A Journey Home, A Tree Planted, A Calm in The Storm

Begin by sharing a brief story about your time in nature this week, or a past experience. Take your experience to prayer and consider this question: how is the search for wholeness and belonging intimately linked with God's creation? From what you have read and watched, what is God calling you or your faith community to do differently (or think about differently) in ministry with youth and/or young adults when it comes to belonging, true community, and God’s boundless compassion and love for us, poured out in all of creation?

Discussion Week 4

July 4th Weekend, 2021

Loyola Institute of Ministry

Youth and Young Adult Spirituality

I took an off roads venture into the woods looking at an open field to see the “calm before the storm” on my way back from visiting my family. They had named the storm, "Elsa", after the movie's main character in "Frozen". There was one tree off of the main highway near the fence that stood strong in its roots amongst a field where you could climb through. Off into the distance the clouds challenged it, and challenged me. Would I want to finish what I started? With this particular church? With this city? Would I understand the scope of living out my “calling”? Am I alone in the field where everyone else is off in the woods of their safety together? Why won’t I accept that He is the cloud that goes before me, the rain that pours forth love, justice, and freedom?

As the oldest young adult on my worship team I am different to them. I am a Jesuit?! And, I’m a Millenial. With that being said, Dr. Josh Packard writes of the Generation Z:

“Young people told us that first they need to be seen and acknowledged, then they need to be understood and counted on, before finally being integrated into the daily life of the group. Our respondents told us that when they feel Noticed, Named, and Known a sense of belonging naturally emerges”.

Most of the time between our inter-generational rotating team it’s hard. My face to face interactions with other worship artists in times past and current, stories with others multi-denominatinally, and even actual college experience away from Facebook pictures baffles them. But, I still do it with God and their help. I stay, like Dr. Packard says, because, “We’re also seeing young people support older generations with grocery shopping and technology questions to make sure they are nourished both physically and socially”. Half our congregation is online only. That is the majority of the post-pandemic world not understanding church before the shift of digital live streaming nor how to work it honestly for themselves aside from their phones in whatever manner.

That short trip I surprised mom with her favorite coffee and tea. It's a ginger blend with honey crystals and a separate coffee blend we get specialty from a store we like in Tampa. I bought her food she would’ve spent elsewhere. I hugged her with love showing I am “making” it despite my “challenges”. I also work full time. My church needs me and yes, even the Catholic Church who prays, supports, and does know me. Sometimes I am even paid to lead, not just in Plant City, but other places on guest worship leading teams or as a musician contributing to other worship teams. But everyone doesn’t know I felt absolutely burnt out. Holy Father says in Christus Vivit:

“Dear young friends, do not let them exploit your youth to promote a shallow life that confuses beauty with appearances. Realize that there is beauty in the labourer who returns home grimy and unkempt, but with the joy of having earned food for his family. There is extraordinary beauty in the fellowship of a family at table, generously sharing what food it has” (183).

I brought to the Tampa church that day some veggie trays and a July 4th cookie cake back that Sunday to church. It didn’t matter that it was “my birthday anniversary” with them. It mattered that I stayed, did, and became who I already said I am to them. It’s up to The Gardener to keep us together, a forest of the Church at large as I am firmly planted like that tree being watered with the rains of his love in Surrender. That weekend, we played and sang "I Surrender" by Matt Crocker and Hillsong United.

Aesthetic Journal

Week 4

Former LIM faculty member, Fr. Jerry Fagin, S.J writes:

..."the Christian life is a response to God’s initiative in revealing Godself to us and in loving us. Christian spirituality is Trinitarian. We encounter God above us, with us, and within us as Father, Son, and Spirit. Christian life is life in the Spirit, a life of grace that both heals us and invites us to share in the life of God."

He goes on to note that "God speaks to us in community and that we need to listen and respond as God’s people bound together by a covenant relationship...We find Jesus present in the assembly as well as in the word, the bread and wine, and the priest. (Fleischer et al. 40 and 55, respectively). Our own spiritual formation takes many forms and is not only helpful to our life and ministry, but we can draw connections between our own story and the stories young people who honor us with when we are open to listening to them.

Some questions to journal with, privately:

How have you grown in your spirituality up to this point? What has God been saying to you through your prayer journals? Have you experienced any moments of consolation or desolation this past week. That is:

When did you experience moments where you felt happy, comforted or at peace?
- What moment are you most grateful for? Take time to offer thanks to God for this experience.
Were there times where you felt drained of energy, angry, frustrated, sad or alone?
- Bring these memories to God and ask for healing.

Then, explore how these feelings connect to the experiences you read about youth or young adults. What is God calling you to notice, to do differently?

Directions for this week:

Offer your own reflections on the above prompts in any way you feel comfortable on this discussion thread. There is no right or wrong way, I only ask that you engage meaningfully in your prayer time and let this time move your heart towards the needs of our young church and keep this post to no more than 100 words. You may use prose or poetry, or simply write a few free lines of reflections.

The first drafts of:

"The Name of Jesus" by:

2021 BMI

2022 CCLI