Author: Rey Marc Viray-Regalado

One definition I would use if I were to define “love”, is that it would be a conscious decision to lay ones life down for the other. The best example of love in action can be found in the life of Jesus who willingly laid down his life for his brothers and sisters that they may have eternal life,  but it did not mean he didn’t have a hard time doing this. This past weekend I was reminded of how human Jesus really was during his time of ministry.

If one were to look into the bible, it can be found that Jesus had very human emotions and feelings. He felt anger (Mark 11:15), he felt sad (John 11:35), he was tired (Mark 6:13), he was afraid (Mark 14:36), and he felt alone (Mark 15:34). These are emotions/feelings that I am sure all of us have felt in some way in our lives.

I have felt all of these emotions in this past week and there were so many moments where I did not know what to do, other than pray. When I pray, I feel a sense of peace knowing that the Lord is listening to me, so for this past week all I have been asking the lord was “what is it that you want me to do”?

During my multiple times of reflection, I came to the realization that every day should be a day to learn something new and to really let the Lord into ones life, one must be vulnerable to the leadings of what God gives us everyday. This also means to accept the things we cannot control and to have faith that God is leading is in the way to holiness.

Praise God for this community and the people who have come to know the Lord. If there’s one thing that I know for sure, is that the Lord answers our prayers and that I was reminded of how loved I am.

A sister shared with me a quote from the journal of St. Teresa of Avila. “It seems very easy to say that we will surrender our will to someone, until we try it and realize that it is the hardest thing we can do if we carry it out as we should… The Lord knows what each of us can bear, and when he sees that one of us is strong, he does not hesitate to fulfill his will in that person. Would you like to see how He treats those who make this prayer, ‘Your will be done’ from their hearts? He gives His gifts in proportion to the love which He bears us. He gives more to those whom He loves most, and He gives in accordance with the courage which he sees that each of us has and the love we can bear for Him. When He sees a soul who loves him greatly, he knows that soul can suffer much for him, whereas one who loves him little will suffer little. For my own part, I believe that Love is the measure of our ability to bear crosses, whether great or small.”

To love is one of the toughest things one can do for ones brothers and sisters. This past week, there have been times where I would do is gather all my thoughts, and think that I have to deal with everything all at once, but a good reminder was to take things one step at a time, and to deal with it over time. To love is also a decision and sometimes we need to take it one step at a time to see how we can love the best in any given moment.

I hope that you, the reader, take your time when making a decision and allow that decision to be out of selfless love so that you may be at peace knowing that God will be glorified.

And with that, may God be forever praised.

Yesterday I went to mass at the same church I usually go to at 12:10pm. Just another normal day. After mass I spent a long time just writing in my journal. I looked up and it was around 1:20pm and I noticed that the altar was being set up for adoration. This was odd because at this parish they normally do not have adoration at this time.

I took it as a sign that I should stay for adoration. Such a good way to spend my time after the weekend being so #eventful. Little did I know how eventful the rest of my time at adoration would be.

After a few moments of seeing that the altar was being setup for adoration, I saw around 8 or 9 priests sitting in the pews… I thought to myself “what the heck is going on?” When the procession started I could not help but feel so humbled. To be adoring Christ alongside priests from the Archdiocese of Toronto.

After the opening prayers, the priest leading the procession sat behind a small desk beside the altar and he was just talking. He was sharing about some of meditations. And whenever he did he would always pull out a verse from the bible and expanded on his meditation.

This felt like a “Household for Fathers.” For those who do not know what a household is, it is a time of the month where members of Couples for Christ and it’s family ministries (Singles for Christ, CFC-Youth, etc.) meet to praise and worship God, and learn more about one’s faith through the experiences of the members of the household. This is what I experienced with these priests. A “household” usually consist of praise and worship, discussions and fellowship. The biggest difference was their praise and worship, discussions and fellowship was in the form of the Adoration, through the silence of their hearts, standing before God having a one on one with Him.

There were 2 topics that the head priest discussed. One was about lukewarmness. The other topic was about Mary & Joseph.

Regarding the topic of lukewarmness, the priest was sharing about the different struggles priests deal with. For priests to minister to the community they need stick true to their prayer time, like the liturgy of the hours. This also means to act when inspired by the Holy Spirit. This means to drop everything you are doing and do what you are called to. For example, using CFC-Youth experiences, if you know that there is an assembly coming up and there is some work that needs to be done, like making phone calls to household members, just do it!

Do not give in to laziness. When serving God in ministry work we need to keep busy. The more we keep busy, the more souls we encounter, the more responsibility we are given, leads to a bigger victory for God.

After this discussion, there was confession available for the priests. To see a priest enter a confessional just brought so much feels in my heart.

After confession the head priest came out again to discuss Mary & Joseph. The love that they have is something that we as Christians can turn to to really understand what love is. To understand love we must first understand the spirit of poverty (or detachment). Poverty in a sense is the detachment from our own desires and looking for what God desires. It is difficult to love poverty if you don’t love what it brings. When we live a life of poverty, it allows for the Lord to work within us because living in poverty says that I need God and He is all that I need.

During my time in front of the Blessed Sacrament I could not help but ask the Lord “Why?” But I knew that to be surround with these priests I must humble myself and accept that I am being pastored right now like a “father”. Whenever the priest would refer the priests he would say stuff like “my fellow priests”. I could not help but feel so affirmed as an MV that the Lord is calling me to be a pastor within this family ministry of  CFC-Youth. In essence that is what we as lay people of the Catholic Church. Especially the men, that we are called to be priests wherever we are called to be.

I can say with great confidence that the Lord has been preparing me for a new chapter of my life. I believe that I am now prepared for what the Lord has for me. I am definitely called to love more.

Thank You Lord for these experiences. May your love for me and your people continue to grow as we grow closer to You. 

And with that may God be forever praised.

This has song has been on repeat for me this past week.

The Lord really knows my heart and He speaks to me through music as some of you who read this may know. (I really enjoy house music.)

So far I’ve seen this song as a really chill house song, but also a song for us discerning MVs or anybody discerning a certain way of life. So I’m going to try and break this song down and share with you how I have reflected with it.

We’re a thousand miles from comfort, we have traveled land and sea
But as long as You are with me, there’s no place I’d rather be
I would wait forever, exalted in the scene
As long as I am with You, my heart continues to beat

As a missionary you can be sent so far from home. Even when you live in the city you grew up in rather than living in a city that you never thought you would be sent to, I think that you can still live so “far” from home because of all the things that a missionary is called to do. Looking at the Full Time Pastoral Workers here in Canada as an example, the majority of our full-timers are in a city that is far from the place they’ve grown up. But I bet that all missionaries can agree with this statement. “As long as You are with me, there’s no place I’d rather be.”  

Right now as an MV I am discerning to be a Full-Time Pastoral Worker, meaning that I need to patiently, not necessarily forever. As I am exalted in the scene I will continue serving the Lord in the way he calls me. As a CFC-Youth MV “as long as I am with (Him), my heart continues to beat.”

With every step we take, Kyoto to The Bay
Strolling so casually
We’re different and the same, get you another name
Switch up the batteries

The Lord is with us in every step we take, from one end of the earth to the other end. (Kyoto is in Japan and The Bay may refer to The Bay in Los Angeles California.) I don’t see my self strolling so casually, but I see the Lord walking with us wherever He sends us. To say that we are different and the same can have truth behind it.  We can never be the same as Jesus, but we are definitely called to live like Him. As God’s children doesn’t that mean we are in some way called to be ‘Christ’s’ to others. Isn’t this our vision for CFC-Youth? “Being and bringing Christ wherever we are.” “We’re different and the same,” we all have other names but as we encounter God all so very differently. In this way He does “switch up the batteries.” 

If you gave me a chance I would take it
It’s a shot in the dark but I’ll make it
Know with all of your heart, you can’t shake me
When I am with you, there’s no place I’d rather be

I see these next few lines as a dialogue between myself and the Lord. If You gave me a chance, Lord I would take it. This is not necessarily for just a call to be a FTPW but in every day when we see God. Even when we fail to see God “it’s a shot in the dark, but I’ll make it” because the Lord is there.

The Lord then responds saying “Know with all of your heart, you can’t shake me,” because just as much as I am in the pursuit of love, the Lord is in pursuit of me and He does not quit. And of course I respond to the Lord just simply acknowledging that “when I am with You, there’s no place I’d rather be.”

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For some of you this kind of reflection may be weird, but for anyone reading this I suggest that you to try to see what the Lord is telling you with the next verse of this song. Maybe this can be your prayer with the Lord.

We staked out on a mission to find our inner peace
Make it everlasting so nothing’s incomplete
It’s easy being with you, sacred simplicity
As long as we’re together, there’s no place I’d rather be.

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I am definitely incomplete with the Lord, for the peace I am searching for is God within me and those who I encounter everyday. Listening to songs like this really enhances my relationship with the Lord because it is something I believe I share with the Lord. When we share things with the people we love don’t we just have a better relationship with them. I’m happy that the Lord showed me this song. I firmly believe that he knows what I enjoy and this song was a gift from Him so that I can share with you what I enjoy.

I strongly believe that by sharing things that we enjoy in life, and the pains we endure in life, will strengthen the relationship you have with the Lord.

The Lord wants to be in relationship with you, He just invites you to share your life Him. And in this we will truly find that “as long as we’re together, there’s no place I’d rather be.”

And with that, may the Lord be forever praised!

Have you ever done something that you did not want to admit to?

I think it’s safe to say that all of us have been there in different degrees, depending our how our conscience has been formed.

In times of regret and shame, I for one tend to isolate myself. Not in a physical sense, but in a spiritual sense. I always end up just praying to God by my spiritual self. Don’t get me wrong I love spending one on one time with the Lord because that’s how I journey with the Lord, but I always forget of that one buddy that is always with me.

My guardian angel.

“On their hands they [angels] will bear you up,/ so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.” (Psalm 91:12)

I always forget that I have a guardian angel that is here to protect me. In times when I am far from God and in times when I’m so close and personal with God.  I have a guardian angel that helping me in my personal missions and journeys with the Lord.

“It is consoling to know that this angel prays without ceasing for us; he offers to God all our good actions, thoughts, desires, if they are pure.” – St. Padre Pio

I remember this one time when I had a friend ask me to pray that she can organize her schedule to go to mass. I sent my guardian angel to this friend. Later that evening my friend told me that she was able to go to mass because her prior commitments fell through.

I’d like to believe that my guardian angel had some sort of hand in this in helping her get to mass that day.

We all have a guardian angel. They exist to help us in our lives. They are “always ready to listen to us, and even more console us,” as St. Padre Pio states. If you have a friend in need, send your guardian angel to help that person out. If you are in the midst of temptation, ask your guardian angel to help you fight against it.

As you continue on with the life God has given you, let us not forget this faithful companion or “divine sidekick” when he picks us up when we fall.

And with that, may God be forever praised!

To be a model of excellence is a call for all of us to strive for more, for better, for greater. Being in school and living as a catholic living out his faith is sometimes difficult.

Growing up I have always been taught to aim to be the best. To do whatever it takes to be the best.

There is one drawback that I have realized. Once you are the best at something, you have come to an end. I think that’s why a lot of people who achieve success do not know what to do after. They end up looking for something more.

If this is the case I think that we should look at this in different way.

Magis
– the “more” or the “better”

To strive for better or more gives you a different outlook because rather than making one choice that leads you to the “best”, you are given many more opportunities and options that help lead you to better.

Just like how we all have different relationships with the Lord, this means that we all do “better” or achieve “more” when journeying with the Lord.

So with all this said, let us strive to be better in our prayer life, to go the extra mile when it comes to loving our Lord.

Go deeper in prayer. Go deeper in your love story with the Lord.

And with that, may God be forever praised!

Monday was a blessing.

I was intending to go to confession and as I walked into the parish there was this really long line. Since I was intending for confession I just went and knelt down in one of the pews close to the confessional.

The past few days I was reflecting a lot about love and how to share love.

When I was at the parish I could not help but notice that the parish was doing a living rosary in honour of our Mama Mary. A living rosary is where there is a group of people and each person says one bead of the rosary. After each person said their prayer, they presented a rose to a statue of Mama Mary and by the end there was a beautiful bouquet of flowers.

I could not help but feel the love of the Lord and while I was examining my conscience all I could think about was our Mama Mary.

To be forgiven in confession is also a call to forgive others when they hurt us. After confession I could not help but feel loved. Just as much as we build a relationship with our Lord, let us not forget the first disciple who loves the people of God.

Next time you pray, don’t forget to say to the Lord that you love him.

Dear Lord, I love you.

And with that may God be forever praised!

Have you ever had a moment when you’re just sitting and then you remember something funny that happened to you and you just laughed wherever you are, and people are just staring at you wondering what you were thinking? That’s how I felt at adoration these past few weeks, as the guy who just had a funny moment or something eventful happen.

The Lord revealed to me water during my reflection time with Him.

Why water?

Sometimes we just need to follow the Lord like a plank of wood on flowing water. But when it comes to big decisions we have to go deeper. This is when I realized that discerning big decisions are like rapids. When on top of rapids its all so rough with water splashing from all the different rocks, making it difficult to make big decisions, but if you were under the water the current is peaceful, calm and free flowing as if nothing were in the way, and this where the Lord wants us to be when making big decisions.

I’ve been discerning a lot of many things in my life right now. For example where to work during the school year, trying to figure out what to sacrifice in order to do other things. I have also been discerning what do for my service in the next few months. To either continue serving the Lord in CFC-Youth or to continue serving the Lord in SFC.

For the longest time I have been struggling with this decision. There are 3 things that I have realized during this discernment period.

1. Be indifferent
If there is one thing that the devil loves the most is when you (and I) are indecisive. In these moments is where we become idle and end up not following the path laid that has already been laid out for the Lord.

2. Just decide
Sometimes we just need to be realistic with what is in front of us. Setup a timeline for your discernment and at the end of it make your decision. Sometimes the answer won’t be clear cut but at least you are making strides towards the Lord.

3. Know that God is there
My one desire is to be where God is. In all decisions that we make the Lord never leaves us. Therefore what ever we decide on, the Lord is there.

Just remember that when making big decisions it always better to do it when you are in a state of grace. A person is more likely to make good decisions in good times. So don’t make big decisions in bad times, because most likely one will make a bad decision.

My hope for all is that we always follow the will of the Lord and for this to happen we must continue to strive to be in a relationship with the Lord. Even in times when we don’t feel like doing much, still the Lord is there.

 “You have called me higher, You have called me deeper and I will go where you lead me Lord.” – All Sons & Daughters

And with that, may God be forever praised!