The Impact of Our Love for Jesus

As the months pass by and the number of retreats continue to rack up, it is only natural to want to sometimes switch to “autopilot” every now and then while on mission.  With that said, I am reminded of an encounter that I had with a student while on retreat with the confirmation class of St. Raphael’s parish in Oshkosh.  This young man, who happened to be in my small group, was taken back by the level of sincerity and devotion that myself and my teammates had in regards to our Lord and in regards to living out our Catholic faith in today’s world.  I remember him saying how his retreat experience reached a turning point after watching a clip from the movie, The Passion of the Christ.  After seeing how deeply this film moved one of my teammates, he said, “it was at this point that I was faced with a reality check.  I never knew someone could be that devoted to Jesus like your teammate was.”  

Looking back on this particular encounter, I am reminded of just how much of an influence our devotion to Jesus can have on the youth who we serve.  I am reminded that to be on mission is much more than a job.  To be on mission is a whole way of living, a state of being, an attitude.  An attitude of gratitude, since we are bolstered by all of the loving support from so many different people.  To be on mission for my Lord, Jesus Christ, is to be so in love with Jesus that those around me come to see Him when they encounter me.  I believe that is the underlying meaning in the prayer of St. John the Baptist when he says, “He must increase, and I must decrease.”  May the Lord help us to fall so deeply in love with Him that we may radiate Christ from every cell in our body.

--Spencer