To My Fathers

St. Joseph & the child Jesus

God has always provided me with wonderful male role models that have guided me. So, in honor of Father's Day I had to make a list of all the reasons why I love my father & brother figures. Here they are:

1. You teach me.
2. You call me out.
3. You pray for me.
4. You build me up.
5. You pray with me.
6. You make me laugh.
7. You won't let me give up.
8. You pray for my ministry.
9. You give me the best advice.
10. You lead me closer to Christ.
11. You make me feel like family.
12. You show me how to fix things.
13. You always pay for lunch & dinner.
14. You protect me & make me feel safe.
15. You teach me how to love like Christ.
16. You have the corniest sense of humor.
17. You challenge me to be & do the best I can.
18. You drive me to the airport at ridiculous hours.
19. You make me smile all the time, even when I'm upset.

Again, Happy Father's Day to all of my wonderful father figures! Thank you for praying for me & always loving me. My life has been blessed by your presence & support. I could not be as strong & faith filled without you. May you continue to follow in St. Joseph's example of selfless service & spiritual foster fatherhood. 

Love, Emma

Want to know more about spiritual fatherhood? Click here: 

http://www.mncc.org/spiritual-motherhood-and-fatherhood/

To Be Amazed

I was sitting here in the missionary house working on a talk entitled "How To Say Yes To God" for Theology On Tap when my mind wandered to past retreats. One in particular stands out to me because it will forever hold a huge place in my heart. My high school's senior PATS retreat continues to be the highlight of a Patriots career at Carroll High School in Riverside, OH.

It was March of 2010 and quite an unusual group of people were brought together to lead the first PATS retreat of the 2010 - 2011 school year. I knew Lindsey & Hannah from grade school. I shared the best French class with Mike & Caroline. AJ, Harper, & I had our own version of the breakfast club with our groups of friends. James, Francesco, Miriam, Angela, & I were in various clubs together.

I didn't think we'd fit together. I didn't think we'd connect. But we each put our doubts aside and ran with it. We were given a job and entrusted with this mission and we certainly delivered. By the time the retreat started we had so many inside jokes it was like we knew each other for ages. The picture above captures it all. That's what saying "Yes!" to God looks like in the face of doubt. That's what confidence in the Lord does to people.

Almost three years ago I lead a retreat with the most dynamic team. If any of you guys are reading this, know that I'm amazed by each of you and how this retreat changed us. You may not know it, but you healed me on this retreat. I love you dearly.

God Bless You,
Rick-A-Roo