Nic Frank spoke to us this afternoon about families and the impact that we can have on our own family. He began by making a comparison to Canada’s own All Dressed Ruffles. If you took out any of the flavors, these chips wouldn’t be the same. Something would be missing. The same can be said for our families. If we took away any of its members, they would be changed. Something would be missing.

Everyone’s family is different, but regardless of the family you come from, our hearts long for family. We were brought into this world through family and they are all around us. That being said, it is easy to fall into the trap of comparing ourselves to the families we see on TV shows and social media. It can be easy to begin asking ourselves “Is this as good as it gets? Could it be better?” Additionally, some families have been taken down a path that no one intended. The path of divorce, addiction and other hurts can be devastating.

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Lisa Cotter shared her heart with us this evening as she told her testimony of finding where she belonged. She began by visiting her teen years and telling us of a “Jesus filled” Spring Break trip she took where she never quite felt like she belonged. Like many of us, she found herself asking “Where do I fit in? Do I belong here?” Upon coming home she found herself living in two separate worlds – her Friday night party world and her Sunday night youth group world. Two competing worlds which again left her asking “Where do I fit in?”

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Katie Prejean-McGrady began her talk with a short story about flying to Indianapolis to speak at an event and she talked about how long she had to wait at the baggage claim. During her speech she snarkily exclaimed that “Baggage claims are the pit of hell.” And she shared how there was this young kid that was cheering every time someone got their bags. Katie was amazed how someone could be the happiest person in the world at the worst possible place – and by doing so make it a little less awful. Katie transitioned into another statement by saying that many people are yearning to fit in and find a place they feel comfortable in; that place is not baggage claims or airports.

We belong with the Lord. We need a comfortable place where we can truly be ourselves, and that place is the church. She then told us how so often people think of the church as a building or a place that limits freedom; this may be because they have been hurt by the church. The church, though, is you and me and every member of the Body of Christ.

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Fr. Mike started his talk with a question that is asked by most people, “How do I get to Heaven?” He then said that most people believe that good people go to Heaven when they die, but that is untrue.

Fr. Mike gave us this scenario: If you die and are standing before God and He asks, “Why should I let you into Heaven?” What would you say? “Because I am good.” or “Because I go to Sunday Mass?” None of these would be good answers. He then explained that the correct answer would be: Because Jesus Christ died for me, and because of that I have chosen to live for Him.

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