Life, just like faith, is a journey. It will always have challenges that we will need to deal with and once one is “solved” there will be another just around the corner. Leaning on faith during these challenges does not automatically fix them, but rather provides a sense of peace to get through them if we allow it.

One of the most wonderful experiences for me is praying in front of the Blessed Sacrament in the Adoration chapel. I can have tears running down my face with all of my struggles and anxieties, and yet I am overcome with a sense of peace. It hasn’t fixed the issues, but rather given me the strength to continue with them. Sometimes I may even get a different perspective on how to address one of the struggles.

Faith experiences are not limited to just holy places. They can happen anywhere: the gym, the grocery store and even stopped at a red light. Often when I’m running late (or think I won’t arrive on time), a red light seems like an obstacle. But it gives me a few precious moments to realize why I am so anxious about where I’m going. And in that recognition, I can turn my fears over to God to work out. I still may arrive late, but at least I’ll be a little less stressed when I get there.

Sometimes within the life journey is mini-journey of faith. I was in the hospital overnight and in the wee hours, I was wide awake since I could not get comfortable and I was fretting about the next steps. I was totally not thinking about God, yet He was thinking of me, as the thought came into my head that there were angels all around me. I could not see them, but my faith allowed me to believe it. I didn’t immediately fall asleep, but I felt a sense of calm that allowed me to rest. The rest I received that night was the building block that allowed me to move forward with the next step of my treatment. What looked like a medical mountain with fears of “what am I going to do” and “how am I going to get through this” was moved in faith one stone at time, one step at a time. In order to recover, I only could do what was in my power: to take care of myself and follow the doctor’s orders. Focusing on those directions and doing them to the best of my ability was the step by step journey to conquer that medical mountain with the faith that God would see me through.

Allowing faith into your life’s journey puts you on a journey of faith. With each new experience and event, you change and grow as a person and you have the opportunity to grow in faith.