O my God, Trinity whom I adore, help me forget myself entirely so to establish myself in you, unmovable and peaceful as if my soul were already in eternity. May nothing be able to trouble my peace or make me leave you, O my unchanging God, but may each minute bring me more deeply into your mystery! Grant my soul peace. Make it your heaven, your beloved dwelling and the place of your rest. May I never abandon you there, but may I be there, whole and entire, completely vigilant in my faith, entirely adoring, and wholly given over to your creative action.

Some would say that faith is a personal thing.   True, faith is very personal.  I would suggest that it is that plus so much more.  Faith is meant to be alive; meant to be lived.  To keep it alive we must feed, or nurture, our faith through prayer, the sacraments, as well as spending time learning about the Church’s teachings.  Living it is accomplished by daily choosing to live a faith filled life of good deeds, kindness, and forgiveness to one another.  Faith is a journey that contains all these elements and more. As the journey is different for each one of us, the destination, encountering God, is the same.

Question, if faith was meant to only be a personal thing, where would we be if Jesus had kept everything to himself?  The truth is Jesus is a perfect example of what it means to have faith. He said “Anyone who has faith will do what I have been doing” (John 14:12). Christ cautioned us not to hide our faith under a bushel basket (Matthew 5:5) rather spread the faith.  Each Sunday, at the end of mass, we are called to go out and share that faith lovingly with one another; especially to those who lack or have never been given a faith. By us living and sharing our faith we may be the only encounter with Christ that someone has in their lives. Given that faith is alive, it goes without saying that it gets tested, even challenged, at times.  Some would say that and one faith is not better than another.  Instead of saying which faith is the better or best, maybe it would be wise to say whichever faith more closely resembles the truth is better than the others. Thankfully, Catholicism is historically based on a solid foundation of truth which is protected by the Holy Spirit

I am always looking for ways to live and deepen my faith. What are some ways or thoughts that you have?

Ultimately God does not send anyone to hell. If we go there it is because in this life we don't want Him. We don't trust him and we avoid him. We don't want to listen to Him, or obey His commandments. We are willingly disobedient. We don't want anything to do with His church and we don't want Him to guide our conscious.  All of this behavior is a rejection of God.  When we die like this we take ourselves to the same place that has nothing to do with God and that is Hell. I have heard it said that the gates of hell are locked from the inside because they want to keep God out just as they did in life, so in death.

If we seek God in this life and want him to be part of our life. If we believe in His teachings and follow them, if our will is to do God's will then when we die just as in life we sought to be with Him, surly we will be.