Sacred

Tuesday, October 22, 2013

At the beginning of my second year as a MV, my mentor suggested for me to be desperate before The Lord and beg for answers. I felt that there was still something in my heart that The Lord wanted me to know before He threw me into the deep. There was a missing piece in my heart that was hindering me.
It was at the MV SHOUT where…
The Lord revealed to me His heart.
His most precious and Sacred Heart.

He was calling my heart to long to be as sacred as His.

I knew in my mind and in my heart that
It wasn’t fully possible for my heart to be as sacred as His.
So I thought to myself…
“How would He affirm me if I was on the right track?”
“How do you measure the ‘sacredness’ of one’s heart?”

BY PUTTING ALL THE PIECES TOGETHER.

Two weeks ago I witnessed a Baptism & the beauty of a Marriage.
The Guloys…our previous Couple Coordinators (Previously Montreal Area Heads back in the day) are blessed with a third child, Kyle. We celebrated his Baptism and welcomed him into the Catholic Community.
This was a sign of their fruitful marriage.

As I watched them surround baby Kyle at the altar…I couldn’t help but sense a a strong presence of joy!
Joy was truly present that day.

The next day, I went to a family Thanksgiving dinner. Our families decided to come together, enjoy each others’ company, and eat good food! At the same time this was an opportunity for us to also spend time with our uncle who has decided to move to the Maritimes and become a Trappist Monk.
The cousins sat around him asking if he was excited and why he decided to dedicate the rest of his life living such an extreme lifestyle.
He just smiled…
and told us that that there was always a piece of his heart that knew that he was called for this.
This is where God was meeting him, calling him to live a life of work and prayer.

His expression of love is to glorify The Lord in everything he does.
Love was truly present that day.

A few days after…I experienced Reconciliation.
It was a whole different experience this time around.
I usually go by myself.
This time…Jesse & I both went.
It’s been a while since we went to confession together…we would usually have to plan it out.
This time we didn’t even discuss that we were going to go…we both just knew.
Experiencing the state of Grace with others is so much more beautiful!

There was peace in my heart.
Peace was truly present that day.

On Sunday I was able to witness a Confirmation at the Mass I attended that evening. It was a special Mass celebrated by the Auxiliary Bishop of Montreal. As the new confirmed man professed the beliefs of the Creed, I was overwhelmed by how strong the Spirit was.

A grown man coming to The Church is a true sign of faithfulness.
Faith was truly present that day.

But, today was a special day.

I was heading to meet up with my coworkers for dinner,
but they told me that they didn’t end up staying at the restaurant and had already left. I was already in town…so I decided to go to Mass at my favourite place,

Sanctuaire du Saint-Sacrement ( Sanctuary of the Blessed Sacrament)
in the heart of Mont Royal.

As I walked into the church…they just finished singing the opening hymn
So I scurried to get a seat.
I was sitting towards the middle in the back.
One of the reasons why I love coming here for Mass is because the
Sisters/Brothers of Jerusalem sing every part of the Mass…but in French.
It is so beautiful.
Another reason as to why I love coming here is because the Sisters randomly Chooses someone from the congregation to bring up
The Body & Blood
Just a few minutes before the offertory.
Ever since I’ve been attending this Mass I’ve always wanted to bring it up.
I never got the chance.
It’s like a secret wish that I carry in my heart every-time I go to Mass there.

I was sitting near the back…
and I thought to myself, maybe next time I should come a few minutes early and sit near the front so that my chances of getting chosen would be greater!

When it came time for the offertory, I saw the Sister peer from the side of her seat and looked into the congregation. I was curious to see who she would ask.
She walked down the aisle,
As if she was looking for someone she knew
Stopped
And kept walking…
I was looking ahead to see who could it be.
I thought we locked eyes
but she was looking at the person a few seats infront from me…
So I turned away.

A few seconds later I felt a tap on my shoulder.

I smiled & nodded.

My heart leaped.

As we were lining up…She handed me the bread to carry up.
I looked at it and I couldn’t believe I was carrying the soon-to-be Jesus in my hands!

Why me? Why me? Why me?

And all I heard The Lord say was…

Why not? Why not? Why not!

After I received the Holy Eucharist.
I knelt back down in my pew.
And it was then when I realized what just happened.

THE PIECES CAME TOGETHER.

I realized where I was.
Amongst the sacred of all sacreds.
The Sanctuary of the Blessed Sacrament.

A Sanctuary in its original meaning, is known as a sacred place.
The Sacraments were considered signs of sacred things.
The Latin word sacramentum means “a sign of the sacred”

The Lord was surrounding me with sacredness. And affirming me in my anointing.
At that moment I was affirmed that the way to sacredness is by witnessing, experiencing, and participating in the Sacraments. In hindsight I realized what the Lord has been surrounding me with…Baptism, Marriage, Holy Orders, Reconciliation, Confirmation, and the Holy Eucharist.

Though I may not be able to fully obtain complete sacredness,
He gives us the gifts of the Sacraments
So that we may be able to taste the beauty of grace and
Experience the sacredness the Lord longs for us to witness within us.

I have come to terms that my heart will never be fully sacred…and that missing piece will always be there…but I am comforted by the fact that every time I am able to participate in the Sacraments, that missing piece in my heart will become smaller and smaller every-time.

O Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, may my heart mirror yours.
O Most Sacred Heart of Jesus,
Pray for us.

Amen 🙂