“Wherever you are and wherever
you feel called to go, whatever you are doing and whatever you feel called to
do next, choose something today that moves you in the direction of your
dreams.”
I am Josie Cruz, a parishioner of St. Mary of the Miraculous Medal in Delano, California. I will be serving as a Lay Mission Helper missionary in the Diocese of Damongo, Ghana as an accountant in the Bishop’s office.
How did I get here? Five years ago, while attending the Los Angeles Religious (LA RELED) Conference in Anaheim, CA, I saw the LMH booth and approached it only wanting to find out what the “Lay” in the organization’s name meant. The staff were very gracious and answered my question and some more. I kept the brochure they gave and anytime I would look at it, I felt a slight nudge in the heart. But I resisted and refused to acknowledge this growing desire to pursue the missionary life.
Each year as I attended the LA RELED, I would purposely avoid the aisle where the LMH booth was located for fear that I would be swayed to join the group. I bargained with God that I was not ready and still had a few more things I had to accomplish.
A visiting priest came to our parish one Sunday and gave a homily on sacrifice and said that true sacrifice meant giving up what we had little of or giving up what we value most and that for me was time. The next Sunday, another priest came, and his sermon centered on the fiat of Mary and asked us to give our “yes” to God without conditions just like our Mother. These two talks really affected me. I knew that it was time for me to give my UNCONDITIONAL YES to the call of the missions.
I thought that it would be smooth sailing from here but I again I was tested. First, I had a tough time convincing my parish priest that I was mission ready. Then came COVID-19 which delayed my formation for one year.
No comments:
Post a Comment