True North Missionaries Journal – Page 203 – "For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain." Phil. 1:21

Reaching Out

If I only touch his garment, I shall be made well. – Matthew 9:21

Often times our response to God’s call is predicated by His ability to provide certain affirmations. We tell the Him, “Lord, give me better grades / give me a better job / a better salary / heal my aunt’s cancer / fix my broken family / etc, before I answer your call.”

Today’s gospel (Matthew 9:18-26 for July 8, 2013) on the other hand shows us how the Lord works wonders if we do things in faith first. The woman who has been sick for 12 years already had faith that her reaching out to the Lord will heal her. It was her action to touch the edge of the Lord’s garment, of a faith reaching out to the Unknowable Almighty, that made her well.

“Take heart, daughter; your faith has made you well.” And instantly the woman was made well. – Matthew 9:22

Maybe all we need is a faith that reaches out to the Lord more often than we say to the Lord to do things for us. The Lord knows all our needs, Jesus did not need to know about the woman’s sickness. He told the woman that her sickness was healed the moment she touched His garment.

Faith leads us to action which then leads to miracles.

Lord, may our faith reach out all the more to You. That our action in itself be our act of faith that opens the door to miracles. Amen.

Hope

I will have hope in You because I have faith in Your plans despite what I see or feel.

I will have hope in You because it was only because of You, I have gotten to where I am today.

I will have hope in You so I may purify my every intention.

I will have hope in You because my loved ones, friends and others need something more than what is on this earth.

I will have hope in You because You are the only one that can provide that.

I will have hope in You because even though I feel as if I have no hope at all, I still look to You first for an answer.

Lord, allow me to sensitive to Your spirit. Allow me to remain faithful in the midst of the things seen and unseen, and allow my faithfulness to glorify You. Though I am weak, You continue to carry me back up. Lord, I offer my life to You, take over.

Desiderio Domini

Flourishing

“The Eucharist is the heart of the Church. Where Eucharistic life flourishes, there the life of the Church will blossom.” —Bl. John Paul II

I feel like the community has been more and more fruitful because of our deepening devotion to Mama Mary and the Eucharist.

Praise God.

My Cup Runneth Over

I remember reading a book where the main character first sees something beautiful. And she knows that it is truly a gift from God. And she has no words to describe the feeling she has. So finally, all she can say is, “my cup runneth over”.

One overwhelming message God told me during the Pacific region core SHouT was “your faith has made you well”. To me it echoed in all the readings, in all the sessions, in all the workshops. The feeling we get when we are together in God is not a feeling that is reserved for us alone, it is available to everyone. Everyone is invited to come share in the joy of our Christ. But it is our choices, our actions, our response to the invitation from the Lord that gives us the privilege of being able to feel the Holy Spirit within us. We can be nice everyday, help out others everyday, be helped and loved by our friends and family every single day. But if we can’t acknowledge that this is all a response to the love of God, then we can only partially feel the amazingness that comes from all we do and all we encounter. If we can’t acknowledge the loving kindness of our Lord, we can never truly be healed – we can never truly be well.

Our God said, “seek and you shall find me”. And He was in every action of my brothers and sisters, in every early morning wake up, in every late night giggle, in every tear, in every affirmation, and in every breath. My cup runneth over.

PGGB

#ilovemyhousehold

LOVED.

The dominant feeling I felt during Pacific Regions area core SHouT. I have never felt so much compassion and love from, and for sisters. Truly the Lord has granted me a beautiful household. I have learned to love, I have learned to serve, and I have learned to carry my cross and journey along side my sisters. The Lord has revealed to me that I cannot do it alone and that I need the support and accountability of them. The foundation of sisterhood is built with love and I feel so blessed to be surrounded by such strong women of God. There was so much joy within the SHouT House that even the simpleness of singing reflections with my sisters was so affirming to witness the Lord in each and every one of them. Pure beauty is simplistic and original. The pureness of the joy that I feel is so liberating. I feel so blessed and so spoiled with Gods love through these sisters. Praise God for sisterhood, praise God for my beautiful household.

“Praise God and God Bless!”

Honk if you love God

Today was Big Sky Region’s 2^nd Car Wash Fundraiser for conference. The youth were out in the sun from 10am-6pm, holding signs and washing cars to raise funds for a lower transportation cost. One of the signs that I had to hold up said “Honk if you love God”.

McPhillips St. is one of the busiest main roads in Winnipeg, and as I held the sign for a short amount of time, I saw many things.

I saw people honk -sometimes once, sometimes a lot- which got me to jump and cheer when they did.
I saw people delay their honks, once past the signs, they would still push their horns.
I saw people hesitate to honk, their hand move over their horn but instead choosing to not push it.
I saw people ignore the sign, and just drove by.
I saw people read the sign, and drive by –silent.

What struck me, was the number of people honking versus those that did not; the long periods of silence, the lack of honks. How many cars passed by that 8hrs? How many people have read that sign?

Today reminded me, that every second of every day, we have an opportunity to proclaim God’s love. We are given the opportunity each day to share Christ to one another, and praise God we can do so openly, freely, without imminent fear of persecution. In Canada, no matter where we live, if you want to find mission, just step outside into the public, and it is there.

How many more honks would there have been, if more people proclaimed Christ to others?

How many more honks would there have been, if I had proclaimed Christ to others more?

I pray that we never grow weary of this mission, to seek it in the every day, and to be bold and fearless even if it’s as simple as proclaiming that we love God.

The Art of Letting Go

I had a conversation with Kuya Gelo yesterday…

About moving on… him from CFC-Youth to SFC, and I from areahead… it was a difficult conversation for me because from it came the reality that after this year, I will no longer be a CFC-Youth Ottawa member.

He asked me if it was a difficult decision for me and I looked down at the ground and told him that it wasn’t my choice, it was His. Although my Couple Coordinators here have been asking me to stay another year, I know it would be selfish of me if I agreed, because that is exactly what I want to do.

I told him it was hard for me because not only do I love this community and this area, but my kids are really…my kids. At RLR several years back, I will always remember how 3 of us sisters went down to Toronto (myself, Brinley and Kathleen), and although we were all split up and I was rooming with Ellen, in the middle of the night I heard a soft knocking on my door. There standing in the hallway were my two girls asking if it was okay for them to stay with me. I held the door open as we wheeled a cot into the room and they slept by the foot of my bed. “My kids,” I sighed. I am overwhelmed with such joy and love for them, that as I sit here at the desk in the office, my eyes are starting to well up. My God, how blessed I am that you have given them to me for all these years. How blessed I am to have seen them grow, literally. Even last weekend, I would have them curl up beside me at the campsite, or hold my hand as we milled through the crowded streets of downtown Ottawa (Canada day). How blessed I am to have cheered for them till I’ve lost my voice, to have dried countless tears, listened to stories of joy and heartbreak, and smiled and nodded countless times in encouragement as they did their talks and shares as I sat in the front row. Oh, how blessed I am.

Then Kuya Gelo told me something…something that I will keep and that gives me so much strength… Yes, they are my kids. But I need to let them grow up. They may struggle, experience problems (and I know I would want nothing more than to swoop in and solve it for them)… but I need to let them grow.

Kids will not always stay kids, after all.

My Father, I thank you for giving me the opportunity to love beyond my capacity. For entrusting to me the most beautiful people I know. I lift each of them up to you, oh Lord. Cover them with your love, fill them with joy in service, and guide them always. Amen.