Newsletter March 14, 2025

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Discovering St. Jude and Finding True Peace

This morning, I was listening to a prayer to St. Jude. Now, I’ve always known St. Jude as a children’s hospital for very ill kids, but I never really knew who St. Jude was. Turns out, he was one of Jesus’s apostles and is known as the Patron Saint of lost causes and desperate situations! How did I not know this? I could have been praying to him for years because let’s be real—I’ve felt lost and desperate more times than I can count.

During this holy season, I am learning. Listen to that—I am learning! For so many years, I ran from learning, from stillness, from facing myself. I picked up things—booze, shopping, distractions—to soothe, to escape. It never once occurred to me to pick up a book or start praying.

Yesterday morning’s Lent Pray 40 on Hallow featured Shayne Smith’s journey to becoming Catholic and how he found God. It was an incredible story, and what blows my mind is that five years ago, I wouldn’t have even thought to download a religious app. Sure, I did yoga and meditations that weren’t explicitly religious but were “spiritual.” But what does that even mean? Spiritual?

So, I did what I always do when I want an answer—I looked it up. Here’s what I found:

Religion:

  • Organized System

  • Community Oriented

  • Defined Teachings

  • Moral Code

  • Faith in a Higher Power—God

Spirituality:

  • Personal and Individual

  • Flexible and Open-minded

  • Inner Experience

  • No Fixed Doctrine—you pick…

  • Connection to the World, Nature, God, or Your Higher Power

You can be both spiritual and religious. I tried that route, but something always felt unsettled, like I was still searching for something I couldn’t quite grasp. I took yoga, got certified as an instructor, went to sound bowl healings—nothing gave me what I was looking for.

It wasn’t until I started praying every morning and asking God for guidance that I finally found what I had been longing for—true love of God and trust that He is in charge. That I am not in control, and that’s okay. I’ve had to learn to live in the day because that’s where true peace and serenity exist—in the moments.

Recently, I had lunch with someone who has no religion and actually thinks religion is terrible. They believe it’s made up, the cause of wars, just another way to control people. And look, they have every right to believe that. But as I sat there listening, I couldn’t help but feel sad. At the end of life, what will she have? A belief that she was in control? I don’t think any of us are truly in control of anything.

That’s where St. Jude comes back in. If he’s the patron saint of the impossible, then I can pray for my friend. Not to change her—because that’s not my place—but to pray that she experiences a change in her heart before her time is up. And let’s be clear, I want change too. I want to humbly ask for St. Jude’s help in the situations that feel impossible in my life.

Because at the end of the day, it’s all about hope and love.

And I want more love in my life. Not just romantic love—but real human connection.

So, I’m sending you all my love and prayers.

XO,
Bizzy