Dear Parish Family, You either have “IT – or you don’t”! The “IT, is CONFIDENCE”! “Be confident souls, our Lord Jesus and the Blessed Mother invite you to do this,” is attributed to Fr Thomas de Saint Laurent. Confidence opens doors to different avenues of our lives. It provides us with opportunities to experience things that may be perceived as challenges. How many times are we hesitant to move forward or try something new? These limitations holding us back can be overcome with our trust that God wants us to succeed. The following suggestions may help you to proceed with conviction. Believe confidence is found in God Identify your confidence killers Pray with honesty Obey God to build your confidence Develop your confidence daily It is important that our confidence is not of false self. We need to look inwardly and see who we are and know through an honest assessment we truly have this credence. My daughter is an amazing woman! Yes, I am a proud mother! She has tremendous confidence and continually uses her talents to help others throughout the world. She uses her confidence to seek out people who will help her achieve some lofty goals through their time and talent. Tracy exudes cheerfulness, warmth, positivity, and optimism. She expects good things to happen, even in the face of many obstacles. One of St Philip Neri’s quotes is “cheerfulness strengthens the heart and helps us to persevere.” We all have confidence, however, some of us have to ask God for more help and dig a little deeper into our reservoir. “We honor God expecting great things from Him. Confidence is the virtue that gives Him the greatest honor.” St Claude de la Colombiere Have a blessed day! Mary Jo