Author: Jobelle Cruz

Loving Through Actions

I woke up from a nap one day to a text from my counterpart asking if i wanted to go to the gym. My initial thought was NO WAY! I haven’t been to a gym in years so I knew this was out of my comfort zone. But, I also knew how much this would mean to him. Half an hour later, there I was in a gym holding my admission card while breathing sweaty gym air and my counterpart with a big smile saying ‘this is monumental.’

I remember being on the elliptical for a long and tiring 30 minutes, counting down every minute. I thought ‘why am i doing this? I didn’t want to do this, but yet I am here.’ But despite the tiredness or uncomfortability, I was simply reminded of how much Christ loved others through His actions. Whether it be physically going to visit a sick person or by carrying the cross during His passion, Jesus knew that the fruit of His actions would be love.

Loving others goes beyond our words. It is shown greatly through our actions. I am reminded of a quote from No Greater Love by Mother Teresa:

“True love is love that causes us pain, that hurts, and yet brings us joy.”

Lord, give me the grace to love others as extravagantly as you did.

Trusting God through my actions

This past month, I was able to serve for RYC for Pacific Region for the logistics committee. I have never served in this capacity, so I have never experienced the amount of time and effort needed in planning. If there was one thing I have realized from serving, it will be this:

Trusting God goes beyond my thoughts and prayers, but it also includes my actions.

With the theme of Journey for RYC, it made me reflect on my journey in my relationship with God. In that journey, I realized how many times I failed to trust God, despite praying for an increase in trust in Him, because my actions say otherwise.

My trust and faithfulness to God were tested when I started to worry about every task that needed to be done, people that needed to be reached out to, conversations that needed to be made with my counterpart and much more. In the moments when I felt overwhelmed and frustrated, my actions and attitude were affected as I began to rely on my own strength or simply just want to give up. But in these moments where I doubted God’s faithfulness, I always hear God saying “Jobelle, do you not trust me enough?” I know that I desire Christ, I know that I want to love Him in every way. I realized that this is the time I can put my prayers into action and come to trust God and his faithfulness in a deeper way.

After experiencing RYC in a different perspective, I am in awe of how much the brothers and sisters around me trusted God through their actions just to allow others to experience Christ. This only inspires me to continue trusting in God, especially through my actions.

“A humble soul does not trust itself, but places all its confidence in God.” St. Faustina