Alive in You?

My last post talked about a friend asking me about how I was doing. I needed the kick in the butt to get myself rolling again. I had gotten stale in my faith...going through the motions...pretending I was intense when really I was lukewarm. "So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth." - Revelation 3:16 I needed the push.

I just got back from a week long mission/retreat at Alive in You - Chattanooga. It is a high school mission trip/retreat. I used the time to pull myself out of West Lafayette, although I still checked my phone daily to keep up on e-mails; but I did not respond to any of them. It was good, not a fix all, but definitely the spark I needed to light the fire. One song has stuck with me from the morning drive mix that was given to us Fuego - Lecrae specifically the repeated chorus: "Set the world on fire let's set the world on fire". It brings me back to St. Catherine of Siena - "Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire."

Saints were actually the focus of the week. We were encouraged to pick 3-4 go to saints to reach out to in prayer when we struggle or just in our day to day life. I tried to come up with a few and then realized that I already carried these with me.

St. Andrew - the first apostle and my namesake, I am drawn to him because of his willingness and foresight to see the Christ as Lord and encourage others to follow him. Andrew brought his brother Peter to follow the Lord...the same Peter who would later be given the keys to heaven and become the first pope.

St. George - patron of Boy Scouts and Soldiers, a defender of honor and slayer of dragons. I turn to George to help fight the demons and the sins they carry. George was my confirmation saint, nothing against St. Michael...but I have always like George more.

St. Raphael the Archangel - patron of travelers and lovers. I originally picked up Raphael during my last serious relationship, where we took him as our patron. When that fell through I kept him with me...not really sure why, but in the end I am glad. Raphael is sent to lead Tobias to find his wife Sarah...his vocation. I have taken Raphael as my patron on the journey to my vocation. Also, I have always found it interesting that he is a little know Archangel. He only appears in the Catholic bible...and even a lot of Catholics have never heard of him because the book of Tobit is not one of the more widely know books. I also had a God moment a few years back when, going through some of my deceased grandfather's belongings I found a medal that, according to my dad, grandpa used to wear religiously. It bears the image of St. Raphael, and I wear it to this day.

This past week has taught me again to pray, to make time for prayer. I am reminded more and more that I cannot struggle with all of this on my own. I need to find a spiritual director, and I need to find a friend to lean on. But first I need to strengthen my prayer life. Before I can have a strong relationship with God I must first have a relationship with Him.

Alive in You was the perfectly timed kick I needed to stride forward and leave the sins of my past behind looking forward to freedom and service to others, so that I may set the world on fire with my actions...and not douse the flames.