As I reflect over my relationship with God, I can see where we’ve moved from acquaintances to friends. For many years I knew of Him, but I did not know Him. In 2008, I attended World Youth Day in Sydney, Australia where I had an amazing encounter with the Holy Spirit. That encounter set my heart on fire and opened my heart to receiving God’s love. I was captivated by His love for me. After that moment all I wanted to do was learn more about Him and serve Him in whatever way I was able to. I realize that the encounter in Sydney was a precursor to what the Lord was preparing in me. I may have been brought up in the Catholic Church, but it was not until this point that I was given a real hunger and thirst for our Lord and my faith.
I literally met Jesus at a retreat that was offered at my church, a Life in the Spirit type of retreat. I remembered asking over and over again in my heart, “What do you say to Jesus?” During the retreat, one of the team members who acted as Jesus stood in front of me, took the paper that my sins and struggles were written on and threw it on the floor and held out his arms and waited for me to embrace him. As I threw my arms around him, he then embraced me as to say “Welcome home”. I remember him whispering to me, “I love you. You are mine”. I held him tight for what seemed to be forever. It was in that moment, having a physical encounter with the person of Jesus Christ through this team member, that my heart was forever captured.
