| Yearning to be with Christ
I was asked to be a part of Perpetual Adoration when my parish
in Baton Rouge started it many years ago. I was a young mother with
four small children at the time. I had no idea what adoration was
all about. I didn't understand the difference between praying alone
at home and praying in an adoration chapel. After only a few months
of being with the Blessed Sacrament, I went through many conversions
of heart. I grew from having an immature faith - that is only believing
because I was taught in school to believe - to having an adult faith
where I made the decision to believe in the True Presence of the
Eucharist with my whole mind, heart and soul.
After I had my fifth child, I had to quit my hour of adoration
but I still visited the chapel when I could and substituted for
some of my friends when they could not make it to their scheduled
hour. God continued to strengthen my faith each and every time I
went.
When baby number six was born, we moved back to New Orleans. The
parish we moved into did not have an adoration chapel. I was missing
something but it took me a while to realize "Who" I was
missing. The yearning to be with Jesus has grown more and more each
year. I have visited a few chapels around the city but they are
too far away from my house for me to commit to an hour.
I am working toward opening a chapel in my own parish now. I pray
for the chance for my parish family to experience Jesus in their
hearts in the way that I was given and to be able to talk to him
face to face in the Blessed Sacrament twenty four hours a day.
C.C. Merritt
St. Andrew the Apostle
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