Praying with Pope John Paul II

This is a brand-new book called "Santo Subito," which in Italian means "Immediate Saint." It's a book with unedited testimonies about Pope John Paul II's prayer life from those who knew him best.

"He spoke with God. You would take one look at him and you knew that he was a person who talked frequently with God.”

I love Pope John Paul II for so many reasons, but one of them is the simple fact that he radiated joy and love. I used to tell my Mom that you could always tell when someone had a truly amazing relationship with Christ because they were peaceful, joyful, confident, compassionate and generous people. There's a "glow." Pope John Paul II had that glow.

So what does this have to do with practicing chastity? A personal relationship with Christ is the foundation of your life. I can't say it any better: "Nothing is more practical than finding God, that is, than falling in love in a quite absolute, final way. What you are in love with, what seizes your imagination,will affect everything. It will decide what will get you out of bed in the morning, what you will do with your evenings, how you spend your weekends, what you read, who you know, what breaks your heart, and what amazes you with joy and gratitude. Fall in love; stay in love,and it will decide everything." ~ Fr. Pedro Arrupe S.J.

An amazing prayer life is the key to living passionately. Until that key unlocked my life, I only practiced chastity because I knew that sex before marriage was sinful and I wanted my husband to have that special gift. While that is certainly not wrong, it's not the whole story. I found that when I started praying intensely my desire switched from wanting not just to please my husband, but to love Christ. Now, I practice chastity for both of them - I know that Christ is, and always will be, the King of my Heart, and that living a life of chastity is ultimately about loving God. Sex inside of marriage mirrors Christ's own self-giving, free, faithful, and fruitful love - and I'm committed to keeping sex inside of marriage because I want to love as He does. Prayer changed my life; I would pick up this book and let it change yours.