Staying Built

“With age-old love I have loved you; so I have kept my mercy toward you. Again I will build you, and you shall stay built.” Jeremiah 31:4

This scripture was shared with me early on in my time in the convent. At the time, I took it at face value, that the Lord wanted me where I was and that He was working. That was true, but throughout this season of Lent I’ve been realizing how the Lord has been fulfilling this promise to me right now.

I’ve been encountering a lot of challenges lately at work that have caused me to have to act in ways that I wouldn’t ordinarily. I’ve had to speak up for myself in instances where I would much rather just let things be.

I was discussing the challenges with my sister the other day and sharing how I dealt with the issues instead of running or avoiding them like I usually do. She replied by saying that while it’s difficult right now, there is obviously something really good happening. Through these difficulties, I’m being called to grow. The Lord is using these struggles to rebuild me in a lasting way.

I often just see struggles at face value and forget that the Lord really does use everything for our good. It’s usually in times of struggle and difficulty that the Lord is working the most. These are the times when He is calling me to be faithful to Him. He uses challenges to help me to grow in virtue and become who He created me to be, to build me anew.

I’ve always struggled with self-confidence and understanding my worth, but throughout this season of Lent, and really since I entered the convent, the Lord has been teaching me how much He loves me and that my worth comes from that love. I’m coming to realize that He really is just calling me to be myself, to love myself enough to stand up for what is right and for what I deserve, and by living that truth He will work wonders through me.

You see, it’s not about what I do, but about who I am. The Lord is gradually and slowly rebuilding me so that I can stay built in my identity as His beloved daughter. He longs to rebuild each and every once of us, so that we can each encounter His enduring love and truly live as His sons and daughters. When we are able to do that, then the world will be transformed.

It’s About A Person

Recently I’ve been writing a lot of talks and giving a few too, some for retreats, some for a Lent series we’re doing at my parish. I had sort of taken a break from writing talks for awhile and so this has been a little challenging for me as of late.

I was talking with one of my friends and coworkers today about what to write for one of the retreats I’m planning and she said something that made me think. I was asking for advice on what to include from my own story in the talk, about how specific to get. I’ve been trying to write this talk for the last three days and kept getting stuck because I didn’t want to share too much. But then my friend called me out. She said I’m trying to not get personal. I was trying to remove myself from the talk.

It’s much easier to talk to a group of people about a topic, to teach them about the Church and how great God is and how much He loves them. And that is extremely important work, but part of being a follower of Christ is that there is a personal connection there. And how better for someone to be able to know what that looks like or to understand why they would want to start a relationship with Christ than to hear an example of what that looks like?

It’s easy to tell people that they need to pray and they need to listen to what the Lord is telling them. What takes a little more effort is being willing to get personal, to share how the Lord has spoken to me and how I responded, or didn’t.  We need to stop hiding from vulnerability. For far too long we as a Church have focused just on the head knowledge. I’m not saying that it isn’t important to know Church teaching or to learn about the Eucharist or what happens at Mass. I’m not saying that all the curriculum we focus on in faith formation is a waste of time, but there is something, someone that makes all of it relevant.

Our faith is personal, it’s about a person, an encounter with Jesus Christ. Without Him, it doesn’t make sense. Without Him, we’re just a bunch of people following some rules. If it wasn’t about Jesus, our faith wouldn’t be worth giving our lives to. So let’s be willing to share our personal encounter with Christ with each other. Take the time to share your story with your friends, with your kids, with your spouse, with that random person you meet around town who is looking for something more. The more we talk about the personal side of our faith, the more people will realize that Jesus saves lives. Let’s get real so that others can truly encounter the one who makes this whole Church worth it.