Sometimes a saint enters our lives quietly, long before we realize just how much she will mean to us. For me, that saint was St. Therese of Lisieux. I first discovered her in high school when my family visited the National Shrine Museum of St. Therese in Darien, Illinois. I didn’t know then how deeply her “little way” would eventually speak to my own life or how often I would return to her example of trusting God in the smallest things.
What first drew me to St. Therese was her simplicity. She sought to love God in the ordinary moments of daily life…to do small things with great love and to trust Him as a little child trusts. There was something incredibly beautiful and comforting about that.
As I grew older, my relationship with St. Therese grew with me. I began to turn to her not only as a saint I admired, but as a spiritual friend who could accompany me on my own journey toward God. Her “little way” reminded me that I did not have to do something extraordinary to become holy. I could simply love God where He had placed me, offer Him the little things, and trust Him with the rest.
In the fall of 2023, I had the opportunity to venerate St. Therese’s relics when they came to the National Shrine of St. Therese all the way from Lisieux, France. It was such a special experience for me. Being able to be so close to the relics of a saint who had become so dear to me made my devotion to her feel even more personal. I was grateful to be there, to ask for her prayers, and to entrust my own journey to her.
The Little Way
As I have grown in my devotion to St. Therese, I have also come to appreciate that her “Little Way” is not about avoiding suffering. She knew what it meant to experience darkness, uncertainty, and suffering, yet she continued to place herself in God’s hands. In her autobiography, Story of a Soul, St. Therese shared about the trial of faith she experienced toward the end of her life, when she struggled with thoughts of doubt and felt as though a wall separated her from Heaven. Even in that darkness, she continued to choose God and trust in Him. Her example has helped me see that even the things I would never choose for myself can become opportunities to love and trust Him. St. Therese has also taught me not to become discouraged by my own weakness. Instead of focusing on everything I cannot do, she encourages me to approach God with confidence, knowing that He loves me as His child. I am reminded that I do not have to be perfect or have everything figured out. I can simply come to Him as I am and trust in His love.
One Reason I Love St. Therese
One of the reasons I love St. Therese so much is because I can see so much of my own spiritual journey in hers. She knew her own littleness and she knew she could not accomplish great things on her own. But she never allowed that to keep her from loving God wholeheartedly.
You don’t have to accomplish something extraordinary to follow St. Therese. Her Little Way begins right where you are, whether it be your home, your workplace, your family, your friendships, and even in the small inconveniences that come up on an ordinary day. She reminds us that nothing is too small to offer to God when it is done with love. Looking back on that first visit to the shrine with my family in high school, I never could have imagined how much St. Therese would come to mean to me. What began as a simple introduction to a young Carmelite saint became a friendship that has continued to grow. I am grateful that God allowed me to discover her and I continue to ask St. Therese to teach me her little way…to love Him simply, trust Him completely, and offer Him the little things each day.
As we celebrate St. Therese’s feast day on October 1, we are invited to rediscover the simplicity of her “little way” by doing small things with great love, trusting in God’s mercy, and allowing even ordinary moments to become opportunities for holiness.
St. Therese of Lisieux, pray for us!
Keep Learning About St. Therese, The Little Flower
The Story of a Soul: The Autobiography of St. Therese of Lisieux
The Little Flower: A Parable of St. Therese of Lisieux
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