ABOUT
A Ministry of Dreaming Big in the Presence of God
About Present Catholic
We’ve all experienced the anticipation leading up to something before. While anticipation is not necessarily a bad thing in and of itself, it can lead us to live in a constant state of longing or desire for the future. This can cause a disconnect from the present moment and keep us from enjoying, participating in, or simply recognizing its existence at all!
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My dream for the Present Catholic speaking, writing, and Etsy designs is to foster a way of thinking and acting that helps people truly embrace the present moment.
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The word “present” can be used in multiple ways. As an adjective it encourages you to BE in this moment. As a verb it reminds you of your calling to GIVE. And as a noun it inspires us to CHERISH the gifts we are given TODAY. By living in the present moment we allow ourselves to better prepare for what the future will hold because we’re actively participating in its creation!
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Through these offerings, I hope you find encouragement to embrace each moment you are given by cultivating a healthy balance between anticipating the future and looking back on the past.
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To find out more about booking me for your next event or writing project, click here!
About Melissa
First and foremost, I am a beloved daughter of God. I write that as much to remind myself as I write it for you because there will never be anything that comes before that. I love spending time with my family and friends- they give me life. I find a lot of joy in hospitality and bringing people together through fun and meaningful gatherings. If you have a story to share (which we all do), I want to hear it! For work, I was the Director of Campus Ministry at a small Catholic college for 5 years. I left that job in June 2022 to pursue my dream of opening a Catholic café! You’ll find me sharing a lot of the journey of this dream becoming reality (God-willing!) with you here.
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Kickboxing is my absolute favorite form of working out but I’m also super proud to say I've completed a Tough Mudder and I'm becoming a bit of a gym rat these days (thanks HypuroFit!). And if there’s anywhere I could travel to it would be back to Italy which stole my heart when I studied abroad there in college!
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As far as my faith, it could be summed up in one of my favorite Bible verses, "I believe, help my unbelief!" (Mark 9:24). I seek to abide by the teachings of the Catholic Church in every area of my life which I’m only ever able to do by the grace of God. His grace is especially present in the healing Sacrament of Reconciliation which I run to when I fall short (which is more often than I care to admit). I find God in the Good, the True, and the Beautiful and I hope you'll find all three of those reflected here too!
About The Logo
The Chi Rho is a symbol that looks like a “P” with an “X” superimposed over it. The Chi and Rho are the first two Greek letters of the Greek word for Christos or Christ. With a little creative license, I combined the "P" and "C" of Present Catholic to look like this sacred symbol.
This symbol was used by Roman Emperor Constantine I and early Christians as their military insignia and later became a written abbreviation for and visual reminder of Jesus Christ.
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Visual reminders are an amazing way to keep our minds fixed on Christ in the present moment of each day!
