Vocations Youth & Young Adults
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God Is Inviting You
Deeper This Lent � ow does God intervene in our lives when we begin to feel disheartened? Whenever I
experience stress or pressure mounting over situations that are often inevitable in life, the Lord seems to consistently remind me of a few things. I’ve noticed a pattern of three things that happen in my life when I begin to feel isolated, discouraged, or like the heaviness of life is starting to cloud my hope and joy. By allowing this pattern of God’s rescuing grace to draw me back to Him and to the joy of living life in Him, I have found a pathway that leads to peace. First, I become aware of my need for friendship and the relationships in my life that sustain and strengthen me. Inevitably, when I take the time to nurture those relationships, I rediscover peace and gratitude for the wonderful people in my life. Even in the times when I am slow to reach out, I
find that God places those friends in my life, either by them contacting me or by circumstances allowing us to cross paths. God desires us to journey through this life with others. Secondly, the Lord reminds me of my own need to keep things simple and return to the most fundamental relationship in my life, that is, my relationship with God Himself. God reminds me in prayer of His love for me and quiets my heart, allowing me to rest in Him and find strength to face life’s circumstances. By allowing myself a return to quiet and deeper prayer, I am renewed in His love and freedom. This also usually serves as a great time to seek Sacramental Absolution by confessing and repenting of my sins, allowing me the freedom of heart to turn more completely to the Lord.
A group of young adults from across the diocese recently attended a Pathways TEC (Together Encounter Christ) retreat at Good Shepherd Church in Jackson. Attendees spent three days contemplating the life, death and resurrection of Christ and the work of the Holy Spirit in their own lives. The next TEC retreat will be June 26-28, 2020, at St. Leo's Church in Pipestone. For more information about Pathways TEC visit the Youth & Young Adult page at www.dowr.org or contact the TEC coordinator Monica Anderson at 507-363-1809 or monij_13@hotmail.com.
March 2020 w The Courier w dowr.org
Young Missionaries Bring the Gospel to Prisoners in Chile
Rev. Jason Kern Director of Vocations jkern@dowr.org
Lastly, I am reminded of how much I sometimes seek my own identity in things like productivity or efficiency rather than in living out of my identity as a beloved son of the Father and in relationship with God and in fellowship with others. When I overvalue work, my interior life dries up and needs to be nourished with the Spring of Life. In this last reminder, it is most often the Lord teaching me to be grateful for the simple things in life and to be content with all that He has provided for me. Rather than grasping at pleasure or some kind of worldly escape, the Lord invites me to a place of contented trust. Knowing I am loved and provided for allows me to return a joyful prayer of praise to the Lord for all that I have in my life. These three realities are where I feel like God wants to deepen our lives during this Lenten season. Will you find time to nurture the relationships that will strengthen you by putting God, fellowship with other Christians, and gratitude of God’s blessings at the forefront of your life? By living the Christian life in this manner, we live our vocation of holiness in the world by keeping Jesus Christ at the center of our lives. We avoid a worldly mentality that buys into the rat-race of the western world. We avoid making the next fleeting pleasure our escape from the interior isolation we feel, and we learn to seek after the Heart of Jesus little by little. Invite others into your life to share the Christian journey, and notice the ways God uses them to help you see His grace and work to grow deeper as a Christian disciple this Lent.
TALCA, CHILE, Feb. 5, 2020 (CNA) - A youth ministry group in the central Chilean Diocese of Talca spent the week of Jan. 27 – Feb. 1 doing prison ministry at a local men’s prison. Nine young people with the Mercy Action youth group volunteered at the Penitentiary Prison of Talca for the week. Led by Deacon Guido Goossens, they began each day with prayer and then traveled to the prison, where they offered a morning catechetical activity on a specific theme and a recreational activity in the afternoon based on the morning catechesis. They stayed overnight at a nearby Catholic school, where they also ate. After the day’s ministry, they returned to the school to share their experiences and to prepare spiritually for the next day. Nicolás Zúñiga Contreras, who participated in Mercy Action for the first time, shared his
Aaron Lofy
Director of Youth & Young Adults, alofy@dowr.org
experience with the prison ministry. He told the Diocese of Talca, “It was a very enlightening experience, which took some courage. I came with a lot of prejudices based on the fact that [these inmates] are in prison, for whatever reason, but we’re going to get them out of their routine and help get them assimilated into Catholic life again.” “I’ve gone on mission in other circumstances but this one has been the most meaningful,” he added. “I felt I needed to do something different, and here I felt like I was making a contribution, like a piece that was missing from a puzzle.” The Mercy Action mission concluded with a Mass at the prison celebrated by the Apostolic Administrator of Chile, Bishop Galo Fernández. Mercy Action also does prison ministry during the rest of the year, and is part of Misión Alégrate (Rejoice) of the Talca diocesan youth ministry.
