Gretchen Pacheco's blog

Can You See It?

Gretchen Pacheco — Mon, 10 May 2010 19:17:31 +0000

I love the stars. When I look up on a clear night the sky is beautifully illuminated with millions of twinkles. When I look at the night sky I always try to find some of the more familiar constellations like the Big Dipper, Little Dipper, Orion’s Belt, or Shrek & Donkey.

God perfectly placed all of those stars in the sky. He also perfectly placed all of those people in our lives, even the ones we sometimes wish he hadn’t. We have lots of experiences in our lives that if we allow Him, God can use to create a masterpiece as brilliant as the night sky.

As gorgeous as what we can see is, there are even more majestic sights in the sky. Have you ever seen pictures from the Hubble Telescope or some other shot in deep space? (If you haven’t, check these out: hubble gallery) In my opinion, these are some of the most awesome displays of God’s handiwork. These images remind me that God’s plans are infinite and astounding. They remind me that just because we don’t see them doesn’t mean they don’t exist. In fact, they may be even more extraordinary than our wildest dreams.

The thing is, if we want to see God’s plans, we must first be connected to God. Then we may need to look harder, dream bigger and maybe even ask for help. On our own we could never see The Cat’s Eye Nebula but with the help of a telescope it comes in to view.

I don’t know what God’s ultimate plan for my life is, or anybody else’s, but I know that I want to be a part of it. So I’m going to do my best to listen more, worry less and remember the words of Psalms 103:11 “As the heavens tower over the earth, so God's love towers over the faithful.”

Live the Lyrics

Gretchen Pacheco — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 15:59:25 +0000

I love praise and worship music. I like the “jump around and go crazy kind” and the “quiet yourself and reflect” kind and all types in between. I just love it! St. Augustine said that “singing is praying twice” and I’m down with that, but is it? I think about some of the prayers we pray at Mass and wonder if they are even praying once. Have you ever felt like everybody is just rushing through the words because it’s what you do rather than savoring those sacred syllables and letting them flow from our lips into our hearts? If we can sometimes get distracted from our prayer in Mass, how much easier is it to get distracted, at the various youth events we all attend, from praying our singing? For real, think about it . . . we’re seeing old friends, jumping around and having all kinds of fun, for some of us, the opportunity to hear/sing that type of music live is rare. With all those distractions it’s easy to forget the purpose of the song.

While I was at one of these events recently and listening to the words as we sang them, it got me thinking, “what if we really lived the lyrics? What if we allowed the lyrics to be such a part of our souls we were unable to separate ourselves from them? What if we actually did what we sang about?” I thought about a few of my favorites and what that would look like:

Broken and Beautiful by Mark Schultz

A line from this song that really strikes me is “When you let God’s grace break in, it’s beautiful. Come as you are, surrender your heart, Broken and Beautiful.”

God wants us just as we are, but we have surrender our hearts. We must allow God in to our hearts, to beautify them, no matter how broken they are or how ugly they have become.

From the Inside Out by Hillsong

This praise and worship song has been fairly popular for the last couple of years and when you allow the lyrics to pour over you it is really a call to something more. Check out these lyrics: “Your will above all else, my purpose remains, The art of losing myself in bringing you praise”. Uh wow, do we live everyday with God’s will above all else? According to the song that is our purpose. I have seen many people lose themselves as they sing, but does that loss of self continue after the retreat or conference? If we’re so caught up in being and doing, we leave little room for God to guide us. Only when we lose ourselves can we really stay at the center of God’s will.

Hold My Hand by Adam Bitter

Consider this lyric, by my friend Adam, “I need you Father of mine, Lord Jesus take hold of my life, Holy Spirit stay by my side, hold my hand”. I struggle so often with thinking I have it under control, that I can handle things on my own. I constantly need to be reminded to go to God and allow him to guide me and take control of my life. I want so desperately to allow the Holy Spirit to lead me in all my interactions. I want to allow and know that our Father is holding my hand. I’ve decided that I want to start each day with this as my prayer. Because I am forgetful, I decided to write those lines on a note card and stick it on the table next to my bed. Now each morning when I wake up, I thank God for the day and then pray this lyric from “Hold My Hand”.

You Are My Joy by The David Crowder* Band

Since I first heard this song, almost 3 years ago, it’s been my favorite. I LOVE it! Part of that is probably because David Crowder is one of my faves, but also because my personal motto is “focus on the joy”. I’ve found that so helpful in good and bad times because when you look for it, you can always find the joy. The song is so simple, these lines in particular stick out to me “And I cannot hold it in, Remain composed. Love's taken over me, So I propose the letting myself go. I am letting myself go.” When I sing these words (typically it’s more shouting than singing) it’s a reminder to care less about what the world may think about me and more what God thinks. To truly be myself and share my faith without fear of judgement and allow God’s love to flow through me to everyone around me.

When we really live the lyrics we allow God to work through us in even more powerful ways. Jesus said that He would do great things but that greater things are still to come (also a lyric) through us. The only way those greater things will come is if we allow ourselves to be changed, changed by the sacraments, prayers and lyrics.

BTW, a lot of people have been asking for titles of songs from the Steubenville Youth Conference and so, thanks to Adam Bitter, here they are:

Christ is Risen by Matt Maher, it hasn't been released yet, and will come out in September on his new album Alive Again

From the Inside Out by Hillsong

Fire Fall Down by Hillsong

Your Name High by Hillsong

Lifted High or Lifted High by Andy Needham

God of the City by Chris Tomlin

You’re Everything by The David Crowder* Band

How You Love Me By Bebo Norman

Glorious God by Adam Bitter (will be on Adam’s new CD)

Overwhelm Me by Adam Bitter

Hold My Hand by Adam Bitter

Unplugging

Gretchen Pacheco — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 21:06:37 +0000

Have you ever found yourself or someone else on their cell phone when they shouldn’t be? I’m not just talking about those annoying blue toothers on their cells in the grocery store, I’m including texting, games, pictures, etc. I myself sometimes struggle with the distraction a cell phone brings. On retreats, I have, on occasion, been known to play a game on my cell phone when I should be paying attention to what someone (mostly Paul) is saying.

Paul admitted that while on vacation with his family he sent an sms update to his twitter feed, ironically the tweet read “will not be twittering til Monday, sometimes you need some time off”. When his wife who was sitting next to him in the car noticed him texting, she took away his cell phone and he’s glad she did.

Sometimes we need to disconnect electronically so we can reconnect spiritually and emotionally, not only to God, but to those around us. I believe our responsibility as followers of Christ is to help our friends and family do the same.

Take Sr. Karolyn, for example, prior to a recent retreat she communicated clearly with the teens attending and their parents that the retreat would be a no cell zone. When the teens arrived to the retreat they all placed their cell phones in a container, so they could reconnect with God and each other without distractions. By the way, Sr. Karolyn did have her cell with her during the whole retreat (not to play games) but in case a parent needed to reach their child. This may surprise some, but the students (and parents) all survived and probably got more out of it because their adult leader wisely helped them to unplug.

Here are some life changing, awesomer than awesome ideas on how to reconnect with yourself, friends, family and God:

Have cell phone free meals
Turn your cell phone off during Mass (even on vibrate it can be a distraction)
Set a time of day or week (perhaps for 30 minutes or a whole Sunday) when you will unplug from technology and use that time to plug in to God
Stop using the excuse that the phone is your watch
Imitate Sr. Karolyn

Doing these things and anything else you can think of will keep our spiritual statuses updated.

This blog was a collaboration of myself, Paul Masek and Kathleen McGovern while travelling to Steubenville St. Louis.

Our Parent Who Art in Heaven?

Gretchen Pacheco — Mon, 18 May 2009 21:02:55 +0000

Growing up in a world of women, I have rarely doubted my worth or abilities. My parents divorced when I was 8 and we moved to where my great-grandma, grandma and 2 of my aunts lived. We’re a matriarchal family, for years everything revolved around my Granny Mary (my mom’s grandma) and after she passed away it was all about her two daughters, Jeanie and Mary Lou. My mom also has 5 sisters. The men in their lives weren’t always constant, either because of death or divorce or even personality (extremely introverted and shy), and so the women were the ones running things. As a girl, growing up surrounded by all of these wonderful women was awesome. They taught me about strength, perseverance, determination, joy, family and of course love. They all poured in to me all that they could and that is something I am very grateful for. They gave me all that they had, but the thing that they could never give me was the love of a father.

After my parents’ divorce, and probably even before, my father wasn’t around. For a wide variety of reasons, he wasn’t able to be the father that I (and my brother and sister) needed. I would see my friends with their dads and know that I was missing out. I used to love the Cosby Show because I thought Cliff Huxtable was the ideal father and I wished I could call him dad. I tried to fill the emptiness from the lack of a real relationship with my father with sports, activities, and relationships. None of them worked. It wasn’t until I met a King that I found my Father.

In college I saw the Lion King, and the words of King Mufasa, to his child, Simba spoke to my heart. In Mufasa’s words I heard the voice of God Our Father, to His child Gretchen. There are countless things about that movie that I love and that really speak to me, but two of the most important are when Mufasa says “You are more than what you have become” and “Remember who you are. You are my son”. Of course, I’m a girl, and God knows that, so I heard “remember who you are. You are my daughter.” God used this movie to reach out to me in a way that nothing else could and the crazy thing is, He used what I trusted least- a father, a male, to show me His love.

The constant love of my Father in Heaven has helped heal the hurts caused by the lack of relationship with my earthly father. Among the many things I love about our church are the constant references we have to Our Father. We refer to Him in many of our prayers in the liturgy and we see Him in statues and art that adorn our sacred spaces. When I pray out-loud, you will most often hear me begin my prayers with Father, not Lord, God or Jesus, but Father. I do that on purpose, to remind myself, and those around me, that while we may feel abandoned or let down by our fathers on earth, The Father is always with us.

The knowledge that I have a Father who is crazy about me is something I often need reminding of. That’s why it’s disappointing to me that some people change the wording of our prayers, spoken and sung, so that instead of saying Father they say creator or another non-gender specific phrase or they simply eliminate the word Father altogether. It’s my understanding that this is done to be inclusive of men and women. Perhaps some feel it is a way to make up for the misogyny that has sometimes occurred in the church and in society. To be honest, I don’t completely understand all the reasoning, but I have no doubt that the people who choose not to use “Father” and/or gender specific language do so because they think it is the most loving option. That is certainly something I can appreciate.

As someone who relies on God the Father and appreciates every reminder of Him to heal my broken heart and spirit, it makes me sad that someone would eliminate these references. In the future if you are ever tempted to do so, please think of me and others like me who would not know a father if we didn’t know The Father.

Men Are Idiots!!

Gretchen Pacheco — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 20:13:07 +0000

Men are idiots. Clearly that’s what many advertisers and companies must think. If not, why would they think that simply using a sexy, scantily clad woman, could sell a man a burger. Of course the barrage of “sex sells” is nothing new, it’s been going on, in one way or another, since advertising began. It’s the latest ad by Hardee’s/Carl’s Jr that’s got me all in a huff. (here's a link to the ad, viewer discretion is advised) To be honest, it’s not even the blatant objectifying of a beautiful, intelligent woman, Padma Lakshmi (the host of one of my fave shows, Top Chef), that is most annoying. What bothers me the most is that for some reason, corporate America has this idea that men are a bunch of buffoons who need nothing more than a sexed up model dripping barbecue sauce everywhere to entice them to buy the latest burger. Quite frankly, it’s disgusting! And I’m not talking about the dripped barbecue sauce Padma eats after swiping it off her leg. It’s also frustrating because of the message this sends to our young men (and women) about what gets attention and what should make them “take notice”.

So what now? I know some people may stop eating at Hardee’s/Carl’s Jr in response to this ad, and that’s cool. My fear though, is that most will simply shrug their shoulders and move on. I mean, they’ve probably seen worse, right? Ugh! My hope and my prayer is that parents and youth workers will take this opportunity to talk to their teens about media influence. This commercial can start a great dialogue about values and what we learn from the media vs. what we learn from God. Talk about who this commercial is directed at (and why) and also what it says about the roles of men and women in our society. Then contrast this with what our Church teaches. I’d also love it if the men, dads and others, simply changed the channel and didn’t allow themselves and those they care about to be disrespected.

I am convinced that many of our teens (and sometimes we adults) mindlessly consume what culture throws at them, it’s our responsibility (and privilege) to show them a better way. We must help them learn to discern what is good, right and true, and give them the tools to disregard that which distracts them from glorifying God and growing in holiness.

**If you’d like resources to help teens, parents and youth workers learn to go beyond mindless media consumption, check out www.cpyu.org

They have a resource available to help teens learn to take the good and leave the bad in media, this is a link to the leader’s guide

Their Spring issue of the Journal of Youth Culture is available for free here

The REAP Team also subscribes to CPYU’s parent page and would be happy to pass it on, just send us an email and put parent page in the subject line.

Oh My Gosh, Have You Heard...

Gretchen Pacheco — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 20:30:40 +0000

Oh My Gosh, Have You Heard...

Isn't it easy to get sucked in to a story about someone else? What about when you find yourself the teller of the story? Ugh, I wish it weren't true, but I've been there. I recently led a small group with some girl's at my parish and we talked about gossip, how easy it is to hear and tell and how much it can hurt people. I found a checklist that we all agreed would be helpful and since I know this is something that can be a struggle for people, I thought I'd pass it on. In this season of Lent (and beyond), wouldn't it be great to stop the chatter?

Gossip Checklist

Some things to think about before you share that bit of information.

- Is the story and/or information I am about to share true?

- Would I share the story and/or information if all the people it was about were here right now?

- Would I want this story and/or information shared about me to others without me around?

- Is the story and/or information helpful to someone?

- Will this story and/or information help resolve conflict between friends?

- Is this story and/or information helping me become a trustworthy person?

If you answered NO to any of these questions, it would be better to keep what you were about to say to yourself!

Just a little something to think about the next time someone asks if you've heard the latest.

Dear Baby Jesus

Gretchen Pacheco — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 16:47:15 +0000

Anybody seen “The Legend of Ricky Bobby”? In true Will Ferrell style it was hysterical and peppered with lots of inappropriate scenes and dialogue. While I’m not trying to endorse it, I can’t ignore the fact that most of the teens I know saw it. One of the things that really caught the attention of the junior high teens I work with was the way Ricky Bobby always prayed to the Baby Jesus. When that movie was popular, almost every time a junior higher prayed they would start with, “Dear Baby Jesus”. In this season of Advent as we prepare for the birth of our Savior, I am reminded of the prayers of junior highers and the letters of Venezuelan children. That may seem like a strange transition, so let me explain. My husband Carlos is Venezuelan and that is where we met (great story for another blog…if I forget, be sure to remind me). He told me that growing up he and everyone he knew wrote their Christmas letters to El Niño Jesus; that right, not Santa, but the baby Jesus. How cool is that!! He said most letters were less about getting lots of stuff and more about love and wishes for family. When I first heard about the letters I thought it was kind of weird and impossible. Unlike letters to Santa, which really reach their destination, right? The more we talked about it with friends and family, the more it made sense. The letters, like a prayer, really reach their destination right? Also, writing to the baby Jesus is a great way to help us focus on who we’re really waiting for.In Venezuela, by the first of December there are nativity scenes everywhere, and I mean everywhere, in stores, the subway, government buildings, homes and of course churches. Some of them are small and some are very elaborate. One of Carlos’ aunts has one that takes up the whole back patio! They all have a couple things in common - the wise men start far away and are gradually moved toward the nativity, and the baby Jesus is out of sight until his birthday. I’ve always been a fan of nativity scenes, I used to play with ours as a kid, and I’m blown away by the detail and love that goes in to the ones I saw in Venezuela. It sort of makes me wonder, what would our store fronts and government buildings look like if instead of writing to Santa, we wrote to the baby Jesus?

A Tattoo Saved My Mom's Life

Gretchen Pacheco — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 20:59:05 +0000

I didn’t realize as a young adult the full impact that my first tattoo would have on my mom. When I got that first tattoo, she was pretty scandalized. She definitely didn’t appreciate the artistic value or even the way it made me feel. For me, getting that first tattoo was a symbol of real independence and a stepping stone on the journey of becoming my own person. For my mom it was probably just another way I was rebelling.

Fast forward 17 years… my mom and I are with my aunt and cousin in a tattoo shop and we aren’t there for me! My aunt has decided that it’s time for her to do something for herself, something that is just hers. A devout Christian in her 50s, she’s the last person I would dream of getting a tattoo, but hey, she’s definitely old enough to make that decision! Besides, I always knew she was a little bit crazy - with 7 kids who wouldn’t be? My mom is along for the ride, and having already gotten 1 tattoo about 10 years ago (sometimes kids DO influence their parents) starts thinking it’s time for another.

My mom and I talk about design and settle on a butterfly. My mom has been going through some tough times and changes over the last year and the butterfly is a beautiful symbol of new life. She chooses her design and talks with the artist. While watching my aunt get her tattoo, she got some “butterflies” in her stomach, but they didn’t stop her from getting one inked on her back.

What a blessing that she did…

Shortly after getting the tattoo a couple of spots on her back started to bother her. They were itchy and irritating. She knew that wasn’t normal and after having been to the doctor several time to have melanomas (skin cancer) removed, she was pretty sure what it was. She made an appointment immediately and the doctor found 5 spots of skin cancer, and 2 of those were right next to the tattoo. Because they were all on her back, if she hadn’t felt something they would have been hard to spot.

I went with her to the doctor to have them removed. 4 of the spots were fairly small and didn’t take too much to remove, but one, most likely the one that had been bugging her, was larger and had to be cut out! Can you imagine if it had continued to grow? The doctor cut out a piece of skin that was about an inch and a half long, an inch wide and a half inch deep. That was the cancer, the cancer that if it had gone undetected could have gotten even bigger and spread, the very same cancer that was found by a butterfly tattoo.

Our God is so awesome and so amazing that He can work through anything, even a tattoo!

HN MY BFF

Gretchen Pacheco — Thu, 15 May 2008 15:18:00 +0000

HN MY BFF

Recently I traveled 280 miles to go to a concert. One of my favorite bands, Hawk Nelson, was playing, so we purchased tickets and prepared for our road trip. On a side note, if you’ve been on a retreat with the REAP team in the last couple of years, chances are you’ve heard us playing them. You can check out their music at www.hawknelson.com

Their music rocks and requires you to jump around and I totally love it! (Yes there was crowd surfing and moshing, although not by me-at least not the crowd surfing part) They also have some songs that are a little more mellow and some that can really pull at your heart. I’ve listened to most of their songs hundreds of times (um, that’s what you do with your favorite bands!) During the concert though, I had a unique experience. They played one of my favorite songs, “Everything That You Ever Wanted” and I felt it. You know how you sometimes feel something when you hear a song? Well, I had heard the song, seriously, hundreds of times but this time was different. I had tears welling up in my eyes and I felt some heaviness in my heart, especially when I heard:

I tried to be perfect, tried to be honest Tried to be everything that you ever wanted I tried to be stronger, tried to be smarter Tried to be everything but you

You can read all the lyrics at the end of this post, but it’s about divorce and how people sometimes feel. I identify with all of it, but on this night, this part in particular grabbed hold of me. My parents split when I was 8. I was always trying to be good, no, check that, not just good, the best, perfect. I got good grades, I played sports, I was in drama, editor of the school paper as a junior, the list goes on and on. I don’t recall making a conscious decision to do all these things, but I know now I was influenced by the need to prove myself. I felt that if I was just good enough then people would love me, my dad would love me.

It took me a long time to realize that my dad loved me the best he could. It was less than I needed, less than I deserved, but due to his alcoholism and other factors, it was all he had. It took even longer for me to realize that I had nothing to prove, that I didn’t need to do or be anything in order to be worthy of love because I’m not the one who makes me worthy. God is. God says I’m worthy even when I don’t act like it, even when I make mistakes and screw up.

I forgave my father long ago for the ways he hurt me. I forgave God for not protecting me from the pain I experienced. I’ve opened my life and heart to God’s healing love and the benefits are amazing. I experienced that this past weekend during the concert. I said I felt some heaviness in my heart when I heard the song, and that still happens to me from time to time. Big hurts can be like that. When that happens I have some choices, I can throw a pity party and get angry, I can brush it off and say it’s no big deal or I can say yeah, that sucks, and yes, I forgive you, again.

Hurt and disappointment are a part of life and there’s really nothing we can do about it. The only choices we have are in how we deal with it. I love what Maya Angelou said about healing past hurts, "We cannot change the past, but we can change our attitude toward it. Uproot guilt and plant forgiveness. Tear out arrogance and seed humility. Exchange love for hate --- thereby, making the present comfortable and the future promising." Isn’t that all any of us really need, a life filled with love, a comfortable present and a promising future.As promised, lyrics to Hawk Nelson’s “Everything That You Ever Wanted” enjoy!

"Everything That You Ever Wanted"I walk the line Leave it all behind I've been waiting forever Lets go back in time When I could read your mind Still I've been waiting It took the seasons going by To know it’s not my fault I tried to be perfect, tried to be honest Tried to be everything that you ever wanted I tried to be stronger, tried to be smarter Tried to be everything but you Its been so long Since you've been home I used to wait up forever I used to say a prayer Wishing you were there And I'm still waiting You told me once You'd show up But I fell for that Before I fell to pieces Then I woke up To no one, Just a picture of Jesus And a house left in pieces It took the seasons going by To know it’s not my fault I tried to be perfect, tried to be honest Tried to be everything that you ever wanted I tried to be stronger, tried to be smarter Tried to be everything but you I wanted you I need you I want to believe you I wanted you I need you I want to believe youI tried to be perfect, tried to be honest tried to be everything but you I tried to be perfect, tried to be honest Tried to be everything that you ever wanted I tried to be stronger, tried to be smarter Tried to be everything but you

Wolf Spiders

Gretchen Pacheco — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 19:32:48 +0000

My nephew, Dominick, is currently obsessed with wolf spiders. Not too long ago he was all about anteaters and velociraptors and I’m sure it won’t be long until he moves on to some other member of the animal kingdom, but for now all he wants to know is everything about wolf spiders. We were in the car and the questions began. How big are wolf spiders? Where do they live? Do they eat people? Have you ever seen one?

The last question is the one that started a great conversation. I told him that I had seen one as a kid at my grandma’s house. We talked about where –behind the wood burning stove and what happened to it- grandpa took it outside. He asked how big it was – I told him it was the size of our dog! After his eyes popped out of his head and he had totally freaked out, I said I was kidding, it was about the size of grandpa’s hand.

I was thinking he might be concerned about going to grandma’s house (thankfully she is still with us) and getting attacked by a wolf spider, so I let him know that it was at her old house in Arizona. I talked about how his mom, uncle and I were little kids then. To this Dominick replied “yeah, and I was in God’s hands”.

Dominick didn’t say anything about being in his mommy’s tummy or it being before he was born, he simply stated the fact that he was with God. Dominick is 5 and he knows exactly where he came from.

Do you?

The Full Impact

Gretchen Pacheco — Wed, 11 Jul 2007 20:46:45 +0000

I’ve just finished a week of sleeping on the floor with 159 other young women (yes, I absolutely count myself as a young woman) during a week-long service project and now it’s time to start thinking about spending 20+ hours on a bus, each way, in possibly snowy, sleety weather. While the pro-life march is still six long months away, the time to plan is short.

I have to admit that every year when I am on the way back from D.C. (or shortly after arriving home), I decide to never make that trip again. My brain and body are still recovering from long hours on the bus and short hours in the hotel room. I tell myself I’ll find an adult from our core team to go or that I’ll go, but that next year I’m definitely flying or…some other hazily thought out plan.

It’s not that the fight for life isn’t a worthy one or that I don’t love seeing so many people called together by God. It’s just that I like my warm house and comfortable bed. Here’s the thing though - isn’t the journey part of the process, part of the offering? It’s not just that people gather in our nation’s capitol to demand changes to the law, but it’s also that they travel so far to get there, and that they give up so much of their time. Adults take time off work, as do many teens. Students miss school, often doing homework while we travel or staying up late the day we get back to finish. There’s also the financial sacrifice; these trips aren’t free.

It’s not just trips like the pro-life march that witness as much by the action as the journey, it’s also mission/service retreats. If you’ve ever been part of Project Life, Christpower, Catholic Heart Work Camps or another week-long service project, you know what I’m talking about. People are appreciative of the work you do, but their amazement grows when they find out that you are sleeping on the floor in a gym, in some places without air-conditioning, not to mention that you have given up t.v., internet, and video games! They are also impressed that so many teens would give of their time for a whole week!

It’s the entire package that makes the full impact. I was reminded of this today as I cleaned off my desk (a monumental task) and came across a disk with pictures from the Pro-Life March. They were filled with smiling faces, prayerful hearts and people who love Jesus enough to follow Him. It reminded me that my sacrifice, and all of our sacrifices, are all part of the full offering. While what we go through is nothing compared to what Jesus gave for us, His example to us is a full one. It doesn’t begin and end with Jesus on the cross but includes the events before and after his crucifixion, some painful and some joyous. The challenge is to embrace the fullness of the pilgrimage experience, the fun, the tedious, the uncomfortable and even the annoying. So as I begin planning for the March for Life I am going to challenge myself to welcome even the parts I don’t like because they are part of the complete journey. This is what Jesus teaches us through his life, death and resurrection. It’s the entire package that makes the full impact.