Hello from Waterford City! Things are going very well here; it has been sporadically busy. A few weeks ago my team and I took to the streets for some Halloween Ministry. You know how most people will go Trick or Treating for Halloween? Well, we took the idea and turned it upside down. We purchased a lot of candy, taped papers advertising one of our prayer meetings onto the candy, and went door to door in pairs giving candy. Many of the groups had a very good reception! My partner (Sean) and I ended up talking with a group of 15 or so elementary school students who all wanted us to come to their schools! It might just be because we were American and had funny accents. Still, maybe one of their teachers will call us and book retreats!
But wait, there's more. We also had the chance to do a series of retreats for a bunch of 12/13 year olds at a school in Tramore, which is a town by the ocean. So cool! The talk for that retreat was based on God's Love and given by yours truly. It's actually pretty different from a lot of other talks we have on NET. Whereas most of the NET talks are meant to work mostly with our life story and our relationship with God, this particular talk has a lot of specific points we have to cover. One of these points, the one that stands out most to me, is: "We Don't Have to Be Holy for God to Love Us". It's pretty much what it sounds like. It's in the outline to combat the misconception a lot of people have that they have to be perfect for God to love them. God loves you and me just as much as he loves St. Francis and St. Peter.
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| Me giving the talk for about 60 1st years in Tramore |
But the thing is, He also loves us too much to leave us where we are. He knows what we can do and wants the absolute BEST for us. And He gives us all the tools to do this. The day after Halloween is known in the Catholic Church as "All Saints' Day." It's a day when we get to take some time and celebrate those who have gone before us, and have done it right. But it's also supposed to be an encouragement. When we were having our prayer meeting that Wednesday night, that is what the priest chose to emphasize. We are not called to just coast through life. We are called to do the absolute best we can do. For me, since I am called to be a missionary here this year, that means that I am called to always give 100% to this diocese and the young people here. How does this apply to your life? How are you supposed to give 100% for your home and your family? How are you called to do the best you can do?
Essentially, how are
you called to be a Saint?
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| Our first team day... also in Tramore |
