What men want...

Proverbs 30:30

Charm is deceptive and beauty fleeting; the woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.

That's what I am talking about.

It's 3:26 and I am still awake...

Here is a life lesson for you folks...

Never drink espresso after 8:00 PM.

God bless...

No weight gain for the Christmas Season...

just to let everyone know...

I made a bet with Cay.

No weight gain, and I have to lose 4 kg by January 18 or I owe her 50 Euro. 

You are all my witnesses :-)

Cold days in Vienna..

I must say that it is quite cold here in Vienna. 

The worst was today with mostly rain and very strong winds. Come on. Seriously. How about some snow.

I was praying today in St Stephan's Cathedral and I could see my breath. Maybe we should raise some money and get some heaters for the Adoration chapel.

As I was praying I felt the Lord telling me that He is here. I must say that I have been experiencing some dryness in prayer. Although, I have been praying constantly, I feel as if the Lord has not been very clear in His words for me. It's in these times that I have come to realize that this is where the faith takes on something greater than a feeling. It's more than a feeling. (I just quoted a song) 

The Lord is here in the dryness. He is here when we don't feel His presence, and it is in these moments that our faith gets tested. Mother Teresa experienced this dryness, or lack of feeling of God from her life, for twelve years. He listens and He is there. 

So brothers and sisters... if you are feeling a lack of His presence I invite you to say, "Lord, I don't feel you right now, but my faith tells me that You are there and You do hear me." Be faithful brothers and sisters... Do not give up. Persevere in your prayer. It is when you don't feel like praying that your prayers take on a new level. These prayers are so dear to the Lord. 

I love you all... God bless...

I am going to.... *drum roll*

Paris! Hahaha once again...

This time it is for sure.

I just bought the ticket.

Air Berlin

December 25-31...

Paris you better get ready. 

In Vienna... once again...

My last blog didn't post...

Sorry.

Anyways, here I am in Vienna once again. I also brought another one of my students with me. It's a little sad, because he is leaving for the States tonight at 8pm. However, we did do the following since we've been here last night:

1) Went to Simbang Gabi (Filipino tradition in which you go to a Mass at night for nine days... it would be a Novena of sorts) last night

2) Went to the Adventmarkt at the Rathaus in downtown Vienna

3) Ran for 30 minutes this morning

Now we are taking off for the UN to have lunch with Tita and Tito... yay. First time in the UN! I know I know... you are probably saying what's the big deal about the UN... but hey I love world peace. I am not sure if they UN can make that happen, but isn't it a great idea?

Aight... after lunch... Adoration and then touring of Vienna...

A wonderful yet tiring day...

Again, I drove to Vienna today. This makes my fourth trip this past week. I have now deemed myself a professional.

We brought the staff to the Vienna Airport today at 6:30am. It was a beautiful drive. The sunrise was gorgeous. However, once we got close to Vienna, the beautiful sky disappeared and was replaced by clouds and fog. It is as if Vienna was swallowed up by gloom.

When we got to the airport it was a mad frenzy in the check-in area. I was glad that I wasn't traveling today. I dropped off my staff. We had hugs and tears, and I left with Horatio, who was at the airport the night before to drop off one of his buddies.

Horatio and I drove back to Gaming and talked about life and future plans... It's funny these future plans. No matter how much we plan, we never do get it quite right :-) Look at me... I'm living in Europe. If you would of asked me if I could see myself living in Europe I would have chuckled.

Anyways... we get back to Kartause and I go back to my room and freshen up a bit for the brunch with the Friars as 11:30. I walked over to the Friary and sat down with some great people for a lovely brunch. The guest of honor at our brunch was Architect Hildebrand. He is quite a remarkable man. He has rebuilt five monastaries throughout Austria. He has built stuff in Vienna. He has vineyards. Despite all his accomplishments, he realizes that it is nothing without the Lord. He is a very prayerful man. It also turned out that we knew some of the same people in Vienna, or at least friends of the same people.

After brunch, I went back to my room and took a 3 hour nap. I woke up and thought it was the next day. I hate that feeling. I freshened up again, and walked over to the Cassidy's for dinner. I played with their five children for about an hour before dinner was served. I love children. They are a rambunctous bunch though. We also played the game, spoons. If you have never played that game you are missing out.

Dinner was fantastic!

After dinner we played more spoons and then ended the evening with a family rosary. I just went to the chapel a while ago and now I am waiting for Father Brad because I think we are supposed to watch a movie. Vienna... I am going back to you tomorrow. God bless!

The staff leaves...

Today was the last day that I got to spend with my staff. They are leaving tomorrow morning for the US, and it will probably be the last time that I see some of them.

We started with going to Mass at 10am, then we had brunch. We gave them time to pack and fix their rooms. We met again at 2pm to have coffee and to have an affirmation session. Good stuff. We went back to the Kartause at around 4:30 and got ready for a vigil Mass. After Mass we headed to the Director's house and had coffee, Christmas Carols and dessert.

Some of us went to the boy's night at Henri's house. It was filled with intellectual discussion on the faith, sports, and reunification of the East and Western Church. Amazing conversation. It's nothing like good conversation to inspire and reflect.

I'm off to bed now, because I have to wake up at 6am to drive the staff members to Vienna for their flight back to the US...

Good night and God bless...

Empty and ready to listen...

The students left last night, actually this morning at around 3am. It was tough. There were long hugs and tears coming lots of them. I felt so sad to see them go, yet so proud of all that they've learned. But the things they taught me. Patience. Kindness. Flexibility. Patience, and more patience. You give until it hurts, and then the pain is no more, instead there is love.

The Kartause is a lot more quiet now. There are still a handful of students remaining. Some of them are my staff. Some are students leaving early next week. But I feel the quiet. Even being in my office right now, the silence speaks to me. Finally things have slowed down, and now it's time to pray and reflect. These times are so crucial, because these times come so very rare in life.

I know now that the Lord is calling me to be more attentive to what He is speaking to me.

We cannot be afraid of the silence. So many of us, including myself, drown out the silence. We don't like it, because of several things:

1) We are not used to it. We don't know what to do when we have it.
2) We are too busy for it. We don't take the time to actually have it.
3) We are afraid of what happens when we have it.

I think the third thing is one that all of us can relate to. I know that there are times when we are finally still and quiet, and what happens? The stuff that we keep pressing down into our hearts and ignoring finally speaks to us. My friend said it best, "When you don't make time to listen to your stuff, the stuff starts speaking to you." What are we ignoring? Why are we afraid of being still and listening? What are we afraid of what God is going to tell us?

Brothers and sisters... I believe that God has something to say to us this Advent season. Please take the time to listen to it. It may be a reminder. It may be a whisper of love for you. He may want to comfort you. He may be trying to heal you from your past. He may want you to change some things in your life. It may make you uncomfortable. It may not be what you want to hear. But I promise you that there is a God. He is real. He loves you. He wants you to know that. Take the time today to listen to Him.

They are going home...

So the day is here.

The American students are leaving. The Fall 2008 class is heading out the door.

It was an amazing time with these students. I think it has been the most meaningful 6 months of my life so far. I have shared good and bad times with these students. I believe that they have seen me in my finest and worst times. But in the end, I believe that we were all made better people for it.

Gaming Fall 2008 class, I will miss you. You are dear to me, because you are my first class here in Austria. You will be in my prayers, and I know that you will go on to do amazing things. Bring the love of Christ into this world. Lighten up the darkness... God be with you.

A riddle for you...

What is greater than God?
What is more evil than the devil?
The poor people have it.
The rich people do not want it.

If you get this... you pretty much rock.

Blessings to you all...

P.S. JD had an amazing time at our praise and worship. I'm bringing her back to Vienna at 5am. Pray for me.

Do not give up...

So I was praying this morning in the chapel... it was a long night... but basically it came down to the fact that I couldn't sleep. When I was praying this morning and trying to listen to the Lord's voice, something inside of me stirred up my heart to say "Do not give up... whatever you do, do not give up."

I wrote it in my journal three times.

Another confirmation of it was this afternoon when I went to confession. Father Brad said to me, "At times when you sin, you can get discouraged. You begin to say this is not worth it, or that you can't do it anymore." Brothers and sisters...

Do not give up.

Our weaknesses and failures can get the best of us at times. I know it is hard. Christ never said it would be. The difficulties, suffering, failures, pains, wounds, sicknesses, etc. make up our cross. And we must carry it every day of our lives.

Do not give up.

Just know that there is a prize that awaits all of us. Some of us are given bigger crosses than the rest. Whatever our cross is, let us know that it is ours to carry. Do not compare your cross to someone else. God only gives us what we can handle. But the prize that awaits us is glorious. No more pain. No more sorry. Joy, excitement, peace, fulfillment. No tears, no pain. Everlasting love and freedom. The best part is that it's not just a destination - heaven. It's an eternal journey with the Lord, and it makes the most enjoyable experience on earth seem like nothing.

Do not give up.

We are in this together. Christ died not for individuals, but for a Church. We make up that Church, and we are joined with our brothers and sisters in Heaven who have gone before us. Most importantly, we have our Jesus, who went before any of us to open the doors to eternity. We must help each other make it. We are our brother's keeper. Do not leave a brother or sister behind.

I love all of you so much. Know that you are in my constant prayers. Please pray for me if you can remember. I need as much help as you all do, if not more. God bless and I'll see you soon...

A night of fun...

First... Happy Feast Day of the Immaculate Conception!

Second... I am staying away from a car for a while.

Third... I love the holiday season. I had the pleasure of going to Reb's and Jericho's house tonight in Vienna. We were able to make scones and Christmas cookies. I was surrounded by fabulous people. The only regret I have was that I had to leave early to get back to Gaming. Ah well... I'm leaving for Christmas break next week, and I'll be spending a considerable amount of time in Vienna with good friends.

God bless you all and have a great night...

9 hours of driving...

So... I spent 9 hours driving today... wow.

I left this morning, after my 10km run and drove about 1:45 minutes to Vienna to pick up Cay and JD. We left JD's place and ended up driving for another 3 hours, because of a faulty navigator. You can never trust those GPS devices. It had me in the back roads of who knows where.

We got into the Gaming at around 4:45pm and then had to drive directly to the restaurant. By the way, I had to drive 8 people around for a "date night." We ate some pizza, and then JD and Cay had to come with me because we didn't go to Mass yet. We showed up late for Mass, but praise God we got to go. I was scared for a moment, because of the possibility of missing every Mass in the area.

After Mass, we picked up the people that went on a date and brought them back to the Kartause. We had some refreshments, and then JD, Cay, and myself went to go pray in the chapel. After some quality time with Jesus in prayer, we stopped by Father Brad's office and had a talk about Scripture. The bomb.

We talked for a little afterwards, and now I am ready for bed... Lord multiply my hours tonight. Tomorrow, I am driving back to Vienna after 10am Mass. Wow, lots of driving. God bless people!

Krampus...

Okay, so tonight the Krampus were let loose on to the Franciscan Campus. Wow those things are terrible. Not to mention, pretty darn scary.

Not too much of an eventful day.

Happy Feast of St. Nicholas! Cay I will see you tomorrow! Hah!

Father Brad...

It is Friday... I am in Gaming... It is cold outside...

I was working out with Father Brad this morning, and I realize now what a blessing he is in my life. We have been working out together now for the past two months. Wow. I think this is the longest workout partner I've had. No offense to any of you who have worked out with me in the past. I also found out last week that we are in the same fraternity! Delta Upsilon. He was part of the University of Michigan chapter, and I was part of the University of Texas in Arlington chapter.

He has also been a blessing for me in my spiritual progress. He calls me on to holiness in small and large ways. Small ways: He always has a joy about him, and whenever you speak with him you know that he has found happiness in the Lord. There is nothing like talking to a priest who is joyful in his priesthood. It is real encouragement for men who are discerning that vocation. Large ways: He calls you on to personal prayer and participation in the Sacramental life in the Church. He has really reminded me of the importance of integrating Scripture into your prayer life. Not only do we have to read the Bible, but we have to let the words of the Bible be realized into our daily lives. How do we do that?

email me and I'll send you a copy of his technique: vgranado@franciscan.edu

So here is a story of God's gift to me today. I'm a sinner, and like any sinner I need forgiveness, which is why I try to make it to confession often. Today I wanted to go to confession, but confessions are on Mondays and Tuesdays. It being Friday, would mean I would have to schedule an appointment with a priest, which can be a bit of an inconvenience (but not impossible) for everyone. So I scheduled an appointment for this afternoon with Father Brad... sweet. Anyways, I am walking to Mass (late) and as I am about to enter into the main chapel, I see that a girl pops out of the confessional box. I asked a friend of mine, who was outside of the main chapel with her adorable little child, if there was confession. She said yes, and that today was special because they have them on the first Friday of the month at this time. I was like... God you are cool... thanks for the gift. I went to confession. It was cleansing, and then went immediately into Mass. Talk about bling-bling.

God is good... all the time... nuff said.

Beginning of Marathon Training...

Ok everyone... I am now beginning my training for the Vienna City Marathon! This event takes place on April 19th 2009. I was able to talk to an elder in Vienna, and he told me that he wants to put together a team to run for Gawad Kalinga. Holla! I just hope we get cool jerseys.

www.vienna-marathon.com

Also, a big shout out to Mr. Ivan Huerto! Happy birthday old man... make sure to take your vitamins.

One high point of my day... I made over 40 waffles for the student "Breakfast Under the Stars." It's a night to kick-off the final exam week. The staff and faculty get together and cook an American breakfast for the students: Waffles, scrambled eggs, sausages, coffee, etc. Very delicious. Ok I'm off to pray now. God bless you all on this Advent journey!

A life without worry..

So I find that in Advent and actually in Lent as well, certain things come up in prayer that don't usually come up. But they are things that need to be dealt with. The thing that has come up for me has been the issue of worry. Let's also call it anxiety.

For me, I have always been somewhat of a worrier. Did I do this correctly? Will this work out in the end? Will I have this kind of job? Will I marry this kind of woman? Will I have enough money? It is enough to drive anyone off the deep end.

What I have learned recently is that, ultimately, the Lord is in control, and there is not much we can do to change things. Take a look at the current economic crisis in the United States. Millions of Americans have been saving up for retirement, putting so much effort into saving for an easy life after their working days. Now, it has all tanked. Lots of them cannot retire, and it would seem like all their efforts have been in vain. Life is so crazy like that. We cannot put faith in our efforts. When we do that, we begin to worry. Our faith has to be in the Lord. He is in control, not us. Furthermore, when we let the Lord take control and be the Master of our lives, life becomes much sweeter. Does it become easier? No. But we no longer have to worry or have these unneeded anxieties, because we can have full confidence that no matter what happens, the Lord will take care of us. Just read Matthew 6:25-34. The Lord will take care of us. Did he not promise us that? Why do we... why do I doubt that promise?

I love what St. Therese of Lisieux says... "Nothing upsets Jesus more than when we lose confidence in Him." Lord help us to be confident in you... You are the only stable thing in our lives, for you will never leave us. You have promised us Salvation, and we know that You will deliver. Lord we pray that you make us people of faith. We ask that you cast out all needless anxiety and worry from our lives. Grant us the peace that we so desire. We are confident in You Lord... We know that when we fix our eyes on You and Your will for our lives, You will bring us to where we need to be. Your will be done. Amen.

2nd Day of Advent My True Love Gave to me...

A big dose of humility...

My day started at 7:50am at the sound of my alarm, which is to the tune of "Step by Step" by New Kids on the Block.

I then went to the gym with Father Brad. We worked out for 45 minutes. It was great.

At 9:00am I went to the chapel to pray for the students.

At 10:00am I am in my office ready for another day... Let me just say here that I experience on a daily basis the beauty of communication. Communication is so very important. Even more important than communication is communicating well. I believe that most problems in terms of any kind of relationship is the lack or misinterpretation of communication.

I also think it is funny how men and women can have a conversation, use the exact same terms, talk about the exact same subject, topic, whatever, and walk away from the conversation with two very different things in their minds. Anyways... what I am trying to communicate is that communication is soooooo important in working relationships (and any relationship for that matter).

I worked through lunch... eeeek.

I had a meeting at 1:00pm with our Student Embassy, who oversees a lot of the student life activities on campus.

At 2:00pm I monitored room checks my the RA staff. You got to make sure the rooms are getting cleaned properly, especially with our boys.

At 4:00pm I had a Skype conversation with my best friend Sean back on main campus.

At 5:00pm I went back to my office to finish up some work and prepare for my talk with the students tonight.

At 6:00pm I had dinner with a student, Chris. I am going to miss that guy so much when he leaves.

At 7:30pm I got ready for the meeting

At 8:00pm I had the meeting with all the students

At 9:00pm I relaxed for 30 minutes

At 9:30pm I met with Nick to help him on his resume

So here I am now at 11:00pm writing this beautiful blog to you beautiful people. I must say that today was very full. I am tired, but a good kind of tired. I missed Mass today, because I worked through my lunch, but I decided I will not do that again.

I still have no had a pastry and still no facebook. Thank you Lord for that grace. I am looking forward to this weekend... Need to catch up on sleep. If anyone is reading this, please squeeze a quick prayer in for me. God bless you all, I am going to bed!

First Day of Advent...

So here we are on the first day of Advent!

What am I doing to prepare for the Lord?

Well... For one I am giving up two things that mean a lot to me:

Facebook

Pastries

So some of you might be asking, well if you are giving up facebook then why not give up this blog? Well I will tell you why. Because in this mind, I believe that this blog is taking up far less time than facebook. That's about as good a reason as I can give. For now at least.

How did I do today? No pastries, and no facebook. I give a lot of credit to Jerome for changing my password. Thanks brother.

So the Adventmarkt has begun at the Kartause. What a nice addition to our community here. Actually, it is kind of a pain, because the little shops have impeded on our classroom space. This causes the already close quarters of the Kartause to get even more cramped. But hey... the students are leaving in two weeks. It just gives them a chance to get even closer.

Tomorrow I shall try the kebabs at the Adventmarkt as well as the gluhwein. God bless your night and I'll see you tomorrow!