Faith's Volunteer Missionary Year No. 2

MY STORY "I am God, you are not."  -Jesus to St. Catherine of Siena Hello, all! I think the above quote sums up what the Lord has been telling me over and over again in this past year missioning at Oregon State University. The year has been a nonstop adventure filled with miracles, growth, healing, failure and success, and ultimately the gift of learning to love Jesus Christ more through it.  My faith has grown so much. I am immensely grateful to those whose generous prayers and financial support made it possible for me to live out this past year. In June, I was invited to serve a second year at the Newman Center! The Lord has made me aware that His will is for me to dedicate another year of life, so here I am walking forward blindly but full of certainty in three things: God calls, God equips, and God provides! It is apparent more than ever the need for Christ's light to shine through ordinary people on college campuses. I am overjoyed to have another opportunity with the St. John Society and the Society of Mary to lead others to the joy and confidence of knowing life in Christ. WHAT IS A VOLUNTEER MISSIONARY? The Volunteer Missionary Program is a 10 month service commitment for recent college grads and young adults focused on deep formation in the faith through prayer, intentional community, and ministry service.  The Volunteers are responsible for assisting the evangelization mission at the Newman Center by running faith formation programs, retreats, and events provided for the students of Oregon State University. The Volunteers mentor students one on one to help them deepen their spiritual life and act as house "fathers" and "mothers" for the Newman Households program (Catholic student housing). This is the first year the Volunteers have been a full team (6 men and 6 women!) Through the year, we recieve personal formation in the the faith through intellectual study, personal prayer and reflection, and their apostolic work so that by living this year, we may become solid disciples of Christ, ready and able to evangelize in our own daily life and vocations. In order to focus fully on our mission, we abstain from dating and working, as well as committing to a vow of poverty. In order to live out this vow, and to enable as many people as possible to join us in our mission, each Volunteer fundraises all living expenses for the year. All support raised will be used for rent, utilities, groceries, travel, and gas, as well as covering retreat expenses and the cost of a mission trip to St Lucia. Any funds raised over my goal amount will be donated to cover the cost of retreats for students, to enable as many as possible to attend! I've included more information about the Newman Center and the St John Society below, as well as an explanation of some of the different programs we run. If you have ANY questions, or want to know more, please feel free to contact me. I would be happy to speak with you and share more.   1. Financial support  We are going to mission bodily, but all are called to "Go and make disciples of all nations." 2. Prayer Whether or not you are called to give financially, I humbly ask for your support in prayer. We can't do anything without prayer, and as it says in Matthew 18:19, "truly, I tell you, that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven." Despite our best efforts, we can only do so much, and we need the prayers of our families, friends, and communities for success in the Lord's will. 3. Sharing this page I truly believe God has enabled the St John Society to be founded as a strong light in the church, and the more people who know about this mission, the farther it can reach! If you can, please share this page on your social media and let others know of the hope that is on this campus, and the opportunity to support us. God bless you for reading and for any support you are inspired to give! call/text: [phone redacted] email: [email redacted] MISSION INFO OSU Newman- https://osunewman.org The Newman Center is the Catholic campus ministry at Oregon State University, run by the St John Society. All its energies are dedicated to the evangelization of students. We reach out on campus, form at the Newman Center, and then send off into the world. Winning the university for Christ is our goal, consequently forming the next generation of leaders. All we do is synthesized in our motto: “STUDENTS FOR CHRIST, CHRISTIANS FOR THE WORLD."   Saint John Society- https://www.socsj.org  The Saint John Society is a Society of Apostolic Life dedicated to the New Evangelization. This Society was founded in Buenos Aires in 1990 by a group of missionary men who are convinced that Christ and the new life that He offers is the most profound, transformative factor in a person's life. For this reason they have dedicated their whole lives to serve the poor and college students. In Oregon, the Saint John Society, alongside their sister order - the Society of Mary, runs the Catholic Newman Centers at Oregon State University and Portland State University. PROGRAMS  Formation programs  Alpha:  A course for lapsed Catholics and those interested in Catholic Christianity Venture: For incoming Catholic freshmen who want to integrate faith and college life and make new friends. Fraugua: (to forge) A program ran by the Religious and Missionaries to form Sophomore and Junior Students Omega: For seniors who have been formed by the Fragua program and are preparing to be sent into the world. Newman Households:  For students living off campus who want spiritual formation in the context of a Christian household community. Bible Studies Athletes Bible Study: For Catholic college athletes at OSU who want to explore the challenges and virtues of Christian athleticism. Spanish Bible Study: For students wanting to connect their Catholic Christian faith with their cultural experiences. Dorm Ministry: We understand the importance of winning souls for Christ early in a students college life and are excited to be launching an in dorm ministry this year to form freshmen.