A few weeks ago, I went to Portugal to the International Forum with Communauté de L’Emmanuel as well as World Youth Day for 10 days. It was such an awesome experience on so many levels for me. I am still chewing on the nuggets received on this pilgrimage. I went with only three other young adults representing the community from the United States. I loved it because our group was so small and it allowed us to get to know each other well. 

The leader of my group was someone I will call “G-Man”. G-Man was the point of contact for the trip and became our leader. As someone who usually dives in and thinks she knows how things should run 😂, I was met face-to- face with the reality that I knew little to nothing.  And let me tell you: this experience left deep footprints on my heart.

I did know what to expect honestly since it was my first time going to World Youth Day except the information that my leader had shared with me. So here I was, embarking on an adventure with three strangers. As I journeyed with them, I began to embrace the beauty of what it means to be led by another. I have had leaders in the past whether at work or in other contexts but for some reason this time, it was different. The soil of my heart was ready to receive. During the pilgrimage, my shepherd was in charge of the routes; always bringing forth suggestions of what we could consider doing and making sure we were well physically, spiritually ect.. It was definitely a humbling experience. It allowed me to take down my walls and be truly who I was created to be! With my walls down, I could allow my shepherd to really take care of me in my humanity.  

Not only I felt cared for, but I was able to let go of control completely trusting that my shepherd knew where we were going. Even if we took the wrong way or something happened, I trusted my shepherd to lead us back on track. Letting go of control brought such deep freedom as well. What I came to realize is that without deep abiding TRUST, I will never follow another person blindly, even God. How could I trust someone that I had barely known? Well, it was simply a gift that the Lord had given me in order to let go of control and let my fear sit on the sidewalk. The truth is that this experience allowed me to encounter Jesus, the Good Shepherd. 

What does that have to do with Jesus, the Good Shepherd you might be asking?

Well, G-Man became a mirror of the Good Shepherd to me in those ten days. Ahh! The Lord knows how much I need tangible experiences. Jesus wants to be my Good Shepherd!. He wants to lead me, shower with His love, take care of me, and heal my disordered images of Him. The truth is that He is truly GOOD! My dear One, you don’t have to strive to figure out the way. If you desire, the Good Shepherd wants to be in charge of  EVERYTHING  and I promise He won’t disappoint. 

P.S: “G-Man”, Thank you for being our shepherd. 

See you in the Eucharist, 

Sourire