Sing to God with your life!

     As a small gift from the Lord, our apostolates at Our Lady of the Valley were cancelled last Sunday because of the federal holiday on Monday. So the Lord chose to bless me in other facets:

#1 - Mass at Blessed Sacrament / St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church with Post-novice Brother Jared Anderson.

     Coming from a very lively city of New Orleans, I was so pumped to throw myself into the Catholic liturgy of the large African American community there. The choir, the participation of the congregation, the holiness with which the priest proclaimed the Word of God...all of it was incredibly beautiful. It had moved us so much so that by the end of the Mass when the visitors were asked to stand, we remained sitting. We turned toward each other and said: "When's the next holiday? We are definitely coming back here."

      Though I was very emotionally moved through this experience, a part of me couldn't help but wonder why every Sunday shouldn't be this way? What if all communities celebrated the Holy Sacrifice with such fervor?! So, my message is this: Sing your hearts out. Sing from your soul. Sing with your life. And God will never allow you to lose your voice.

#2 - Nets Basketball Game field trip with 20 young persons from the Don Bosco Youth Center.

     Of the amazing generosity of a recently graduated Don Bosco Prep student, we were able to accompany 20 students of our Friday Night Youth Center to the Nets Game. It was so awesome to see the excitement of the kids to be out and having fun together away from the youth center. They were truly able to enjoy themselves. It just so happened that two of the guys in formation attend the same gym as most of the entertainers at the game. So, the maskot paid a special visit to the kids towards the end of the game. It was a wonderful end to a wonderful evening. Thank you, Jay-Z, for your monetary investments in the Nets.

Today, on this first Friday of the Lenten season, my challenge to you remains the same as mentioned above: Sing your hearts out. Sing from your soul. Sing with your life. And God will never allow you to lose your voice.
For we need not wait until Easter to proclaim His Greatness. We know He is resurrected. Let us live accordingly!