I tend to be a pretty serious person. Anyone who knows me will probably roll their eyes at that statement, cause look – I do crack a lot of jokes. But I think a lot. Kind of non-stop. It’s really easy to cracks some jokes. It feels pretty terrible when you feel like a joke.
At times I can be really defensive, the same patterns of risk-assessing, over-thinking, and wall-building has followed me into my relationship with God. I treat him like I’d treat my closest friends in a lot of ways – he knows me more than any person. But when things get a little too real with God, I deflect the tension and walk away.
I remember the first time I experienced worship at Ignite Conference. It is one thing to stop working to come to prayer, but it’s a whole other task to turn your thoughts completely over to God, especially when you’re prone to overthinking. But just like I do with the prayers in the mass, I started to think about the lyrics of the songs. What they meant, who they declared God to be. Who they said I was in Him. Without even noticing, I stopped thinking about the words, discerning their meaning. The songs became prayers, and my prayer became worship.
There is something all-consuming about welcoming him into your prayer and into your life through praise and worship. Sitting, standing, kneeling. Hands open and raised, or held together in prayer. At Ignite Conference, I was able to hear so clearly what the Spirit was saying all those times I’d walked away when it got too real. He was saying, “Come and see what God has done: He is awesome in his deeds among mortals.” Ps 66:5
At Ignite Conference, Jesus calls us to come and see the wonders; the wonder of vulnerability and freedom in prayer. See it, experience it, live it.
Ignite Conference is a national Catholic youth conference held in Brisbane on 21-24 September 2017. For more details head to www.igniteconference.com.au/come
By Brigid Todd
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About Brigid Todd
Brigid is part of the Ignite Youth Leadership Team, with responsibility for ministry to young adults. She will be presenting at this years Ignite Conference.
The blog post ‘Come and See the Wonders‘ first appeared on Ignite Youth
THE CATHOLIC LEADER IS A PROUD MEDIA PARTNER OF IGNITE CONFERENCE 2017
