"He replied, 'You of little faith, why are you so afraid?' Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm." - Matthew 8:26
There it is. The Blessed Sacrament stands on the middle of the altar underneath the crucifix. People around you begin to kneel and bow. The music begins and everyone starts singing along. Eyes are closed, hands are up, and God is in our presence. But something feels off. You can't find peace in adoration.
The Life Teen Leadership Conference (LTLC) had taken over the Benedictine College campus in Atchison, Kansas, last week. Over 500 teenagers from all across the country came together to learn leadership skills, build new friendships, and grow closer to God.
I was fortunate enough to attend this conference last summer with my good friends. It was a life-changing week, and I just had to experience it again. Luckily, living two minutes away from the campus has its perks. So I snuck into adoration on Thursday night.
As soon as the music and worship began, I immediately felt at peace.
But I am here to give advice to those who may find it challenging to enter into adoration. It's not easy to kneel for an hour and focus solely on Jesus. I still find it tough sometimes when I'm at Mass or praying the rosary. It took me three years to finally find that serenity and calmness.
But adoration is beautiful because for one hour, you can forget about the world around you. It is you and God, and nobody else. We live in a busy world; constantly on our phones, on our feet and everything on our mind. But this is the opportunity to forget about all that. It's time to be with God.
Whether you are stressed out at work, going through family struggles, arguing with your best friend, going through a horrible breakup, mourning the death of a loved one, fighting your own internal conflicts, whatever your situation may be... lift it up to Him. God will take care of you. He will give you peace but only if we let Him. Once we open our hearts to Him, everything becomes easier. It becomes overwhelming -- but in a good way, I promise! Before you know it, tears of joy will flow down and it is at that moment you know God is within you. And what more could we ask for?
Trust in the Lord to calm the storms inside of you. And you will know it is well.
