A Day in the Life

Most people wonder what I do every day as a Catholic missionary. The short answer is, I live. Just like you. I am living life here on earth in the hopes of one day experiencing something beyond this earthly life. The more complex answer involves a lot of scheduling, re-scheduling, re-scheduling the re-scheduled...so on and so forth. As a missionary, I strive to live a sacramental life and allow myself to be as spiritually fed as possible so that I can fully share Christ with the students at MIT. Here is an example of a typical day for me:

7:00 am- Wake up
8:00 am- Mass
9:00 am- Prayer in the Chapel on campus
10:30 am- Team Check-in
10:35 am- Late breakfast and Mission Partner Development (fund raising)
12:00 pm- Lunch with student(s)
2:00 pm- Discipleship with a student
3:00 pm- Evangelizing with a teammate
4:00 pm- Share life with students (hang out, study, workout etc.) or personal time at home reading or resting
6:00 pm- Prep Bible Study
7:00 to 10:00 pm- A cappella rehearsal with students (Monday nights)
8:00 pm- Bible Study (Tuesdays and Wednesdays)
9:00 pm- Head back to the apartment to wind down and get some sleep.

Of course, every day is different and some days I attend Mass later or we have team night or other spontaneous/planned social activities with students. However, I am constantly reminded of how beautiful life is  when I think of the way God has called me to live right now as a missionary serving for Him at MIT. When I find struggles and experience setbacks, I am able to find peace knowing that God has complete control. The war has already been won. It is up to us to do our part to search for the truth; the meaning and purpose of life can be found if we place our trust in the person of Jesus Christ.

I pray that everyone has a very happy Thanksgiving! This will be the first time I will not be spending Thanksgiving in Shelbina, Missouri with my family for 22 years. It is a little sad, but at the same time I can find joy in the fact that God has given me great people to spend this time with here on the east coast. Be blessed!

Kennebunkport, Maine - Fall 2011