Revive, week 3!

Hi again everyone!

This is Marc-André, and I have the privilege this week to give you a rundown of how the mission has been going so far!

Mary and I started to volunteer at the local Catholic elementary school. We’re getting to know the young people that will be a part of our youth group this coming July! It is a great experience getting to know the wonderful children and future leaders of Espanola!

We had another awesome faith study night this past Thursday. We had about 35 people come out again for Lesson 2 of Discovery, and like the first lesson, our participants enjoyed their small group sessions and all learned about how we can deepen our relationship with Jesus.

In Lesson 1, we looked at how God’s love is personal, NOT general, and how we are created to be in a relationship with Him. Lesson 2 looks at ourselves and how we respond to God’s love. The lesson can be broken up into three sections: 1. Love is offered; 2. Love is proven; 3. Love is merciful.

In the first section, we look at the creation story with Adam and Eve and the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. We pose the question, “We know that our God is a loving god, so why would He put the Tree of Knowledge in the garden and specifically tell Adam and Even NOT to eat from it? How is this an act of God’s love?” Well, what do you think the answer is?

God offers us His love so that we can accept it. Adam and Eve needed to have the choice to disobey God, i.e. the choice not to love God, in order for them to have the choice to obey God, i.e. to love God. Imagine if God had not put the Tree in the garden. Adam and Eve would not be able to disobey God; it would be impossible for them. They would be forced to love God, which is not love at all. Love is only love if it is freely chosen. We need free will if we want to love, and God offers us free will by giving us the option of sin, of disobeying God, of not loving God and neighbour.

But humanity did choose to disobey God, which caused us to be separated from God. This leads to our second section, “Love is Proven.” To mend this gap between humanity and God, God had to send His only Son, Jesus, to die for us, to prove to us that despite our disobedience, God still desires to be with us. Jesus did not die only for those who loved him; He died mainly for those who hated, despised, and loathed Him. Think about it. You might have a mother, a father, a daughter, a son, or a friend that you love so much, you would be willing to die for them. But what about an ungodly person? What about your worst enemy or a murderer? Would you be willing to die for them? I don’t think I would! But as it says in Romans 5:6-8:

For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. Indeed, rarely will anyone die for a righteous person – though perhaps for a good person someone might actually dare to die. But God proves his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us.

What an immense love! Christ has made a way for us to turn back to our Heavenly Father! Which leads to the last section: Love is Merciful. God gave us the parable of the Prodigal Son to exemplify what happens when we turn back to Him. In the parable, the younger of two sons takes his inheritance from his father and leaves home for a life of indulgence. He squanders all he has on pleasures of the world and is ultimately left with nothing. He looks at himself and realizes he has nothing. He decides to return home: Maybe my father will take me back as one of his servants, he thinks to himself. At least they have food to eat. But on his way back, while the son was still a long way off, the father runs to his lost son and hugs him and kisses him. He warmly welcomes his son back into his family. “My son was dead,” the father says, “and is alive again!” The father forgives his son of his great offense and floods him with love. What great mercy!

This isn’t just a nice story. This is reality! This is how merciful our Father is to us whenever we turn ourselves away from Him. The moment we decide to turn back, He instantly fills us with his love, mercy, and grace.

Wow, that ended up being longer than I thought! That’s a tidbit of what we learn in Discovery and how we can draw closer to God. If you’re interested to hear more about this faith study, come join us at St. Jude in Espanola on Thursdays at 7:30 pm! If you are nowhere near this town, send me a message, because I know for a fact there is a Discovery study going on near you! It’s being led all across Canada! Check out this website and see for yourself: leadingdiscovery.ca

Contact us at revive.espanola@gmail.com or call us at 705-869-6340 for more info!

Thanks so much everyone! Have a blessed day,

Marc-André