Author Archives: Erika Parks

LifeTeen.com Blog

The Holiest Vocation

By | February 19, 2013

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About three years ago, I went through a big conversion and in the course of a few months my faith grew exponentially and so much in my life changed. I was reading everything about the Church I could get my hands on, I prayed the rosary daily and I practically lived in the adoration chapel. I was in love with my faith and everyone around me knew it.

However, as wonderful as my renewed spiritual life was, I quickly began to freak out . . . being that holy obviously meant I was being called to be a nun, right?

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The Pill: It’s Just a Cover Up

By | January 28, 2013

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However, the truth is this: the most commonly used birth control pill is nothing more than a mask.

Just like make up only covers up a pimple, the birth control pill only covers up the symptoms of a woman’s menstrual issue. Sure the pill might make a woman’s cycle seem regular, but in reality, it is only fooling her body and her mind.

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Is Your Faith Dead or Alive?

By | October 18, 2012

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Every Sunday morning my routine is the same: wake up, brush my teeth, fix my hair, put on a pretty dress, and head to 8:30AM Mass. But sometimes, when 9:30 rolls around, I realize I’ve completely missed it all. I missed the Creed, the readings, and even Jesus, Himself, coming down from Heaven onto the altar!

Now, I don’t mean that I sometimes press the snooze button so many times that I end up missing Mass. I mean I physically show up, but too often I am still spiritually sleeping throughout the entire Mass.

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How Far is Too Far?: Purity in Dating

By | September 26, 2012

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This October, my boyfriend and I will celebrate our 1 year anniversary of dating. Needless to say, I’m excited to celebrate the day with a bunch of cheesy romantic gifts and a fancy dinner!

However, as the day comes closer, I find myself reflecting on all the things I’ve learned these last twelve months, especially about how to live a holy and chaste relationship.

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Embracing Poverty

By | August 30, 2012

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As the new year began, I was still jobless and doubting that it was God’s plan for me to make such a big move in just a few months. However, I went to daily Mass one day and found myself begging God to help me understand what He had planned for me. I remember praying over and over, “Lord, give me the grace to follow you, even unto death.”

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Worship Fail: My Most Embarrassing Moment

By | June 19, 2012

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Adoration continued and I began to let go little by little. As I dove into prayer with the other 500 teens, Matt Maher encouraged us to vocalize our prayer and praises to God. Everyone around me was praying aloud and I wanted so badly to have the courage to shout out my love for God too, but I was so consumed by the idea that I would do it wrong or that people would think I was weird.

I stayed silent at first and continued to pray in my heart. I begged God for the courage to pray aloud and to help me get over my pride, self-doubt and fear. He definitely heard my prayers.

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Wedding Wisdom: What Mary Taught Us at Cana

By | May 8, 2012

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I’m a girl and I love weddings.

Big surprise, huh? I’ve spent many of my 22 years dreaming up the most perfect wedding. And since the creation of Pinterest, the harmless dreaming has become a borderline-addictive pinning-spree of dresses, cakes and the world’s most adorable flower girl outfits. So, it’s only natural, that I fell in love with the story of the Wedding at Cana when I started praying the rosary regularly last year.

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How to Pray About Your Future

By | April 26, 2012

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The most important part of all of this is in Jesus’ first three words to Peter, “Come after me.” With these words, Jesus is not only saying that Peter must physically follow him, but that Peter’s desires are to come after His as well. If we focus on doing what Jesus is asking us to do, our lives will change radically. Obviously, not all of us will become Pope, like Peter, but I guarantee that God will do far greater things with your life than you could ever do on your own.

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Parents: How to Love ‘em

By | March 14, 2012

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Let’s be real, I think the Lord had teenagers in mind when He came up with the fourth commandment. It’s no secret that the teen years are often the hardest when it comes to the parent-child relationship.

But does it have to be that way?

Not at all! When we realize that we have a responsibility to honor our parents, the relationship becomes a lot easier. Here’s a little piece of my experience with the 4th commandment.

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