July 29, 2011
A sign of God’s love
Above are members of the team who are preparing for TEC 77 this weekend at St. Mary Church in Ireland. They include, front row, Kaitlin Emmert, Beth Wendholt, Alexa Mehringer, Erica Seibert, Emily Eckstein, Amy Hagedorn, Kristin Brokaw, second row, Nicole Bies, Brad Tretter, Sarah Hurt, Hannah Judy, Rachael Kellems, David Shields, Mitch Strange, Mike Kocher, Zoe Cannon, third row, Tyler Kellems, Keith Dewig, Chris Ambrose, Father Gary Kaiser, Roy Litwiler, Father Jason Gries, Susan Reuber, Terri Hilderbrand, Diane Bies, Luke Hassler and Andy Hirsch. Benedictine Sister Teresa Gunter, Jaclyn Snyder, Jade Uebelhor and Anthony Begle are also members of the team. Click for a larger version.
By ZOE CANNON (Special to the Message)
If you were asked to name a great leader in history, who would come to mind? And how do you recognize good leadership? Thomas Jefferson once said, “In matters of principle, we must stand like a rock.” The fundamental nature of leadership is that you have to have a vision. “Where there is no vision, the people perish.” Proverbs 29:18
Our visions and dreams should be cherished like children. You may never have thought of your dreams as children, but that is what they are. They are the offspring and joy of today and the hope of the future. They must be protected, nurtured, and encouraged to grow; for someday, they may take care of you.
In our hopes and dreams we often pray for a sign, and the most important sign of God’s love is in the Eucharist. Our Catholic faith teaches that this is not a symbol, but a genuine sign of His love, in the “real presence” of the Body and Blood of Jesus. In this gift we have infinite power and endless possibilities, so we have nothing to fear. Each of us is called to play a principal role of building up the Body of Christ, the Church. In our leadership and faith, we must stand solid like a rock.
“I have a dream . . . ” This small sentence shared by the powerful leader Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. changed the course of history, but he did not do it alone. We need the help of others, and we need to give help to others as well. This requires us to connect to other people, which is exactly what God had in mind with His vision for the world He created.
The “call” to leadership can come in a variety of ways. Some-times we are invited to take on leadership roles. Other times God places some calling in our hearts that we feel compelled to respond to. Effective leadership requires us to be visionaries, administrators and shepherds. The challenges should not discourage us from offering ourselves to the Christian community; remember, we have the gift of the Eucharist to give us strength. The best leaders are people who recognize their utter dependence upon God. They take the work of the Lord seriously, but not so much themselves.
I have certainly found this type of faith and leadership in the team members who direct a Teens Encounter Christ weekend. From July 30 through through August 1, we will participate in the seventy-seventh TEC weekend at St. Mary’s in Ireland, Indiana. We have been blessed to celebrate 20 years of SWITEC, Southwest Indiana Teens Encounter Christ, in the Diocese of Evansville. In addition to this team of over 40 people, many volunteers will come to help prepare meals and serve 27 young people and adult observers over the weekend.
Pray for the Holy Spirit to inspire the people making TEC 77. This vision to help Teens Encounter Christ is the future of our Church. As you pray for this team, look at the faces in the team picture. If asked, could you point out the three young men who are entering the seminary this fall? Could you recognize the two beautiful young women entering a religious order in the months ahead? Father Jason Gries and Father Gary Kaiser, the spiritual directors for the weekend, may be easy to pick out of the crowd, but do you realize how important TEC has been in their faith journey? The SWITEC Move-ment is developing new leaders for our Catholic Church. In a crowd you may not recognize them, but God already knows who they are. Thank you for your prayers and support; they are helping people be all that God has called them to be. Where there are hopes and dreams in a Christian community, people thrive. Amen!