It takes courage to meet yourself on the road to God’s purpose.

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It takes courage to meet yourself on the road to God’s purpose. But, I guarantee it will bring you the kind of passion that anyone who wants to make a difference needs to have.

Finding your Powerful Question is the intentional way to find purpose. This is not an intellectual exercise, it is not about appearing smart or holy, nor about the wounds you have suffered. You are not your wounds. Your Powerful Question is about discovering the you who was known and loved by God since the beginning of time.

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO SAY THAT OUR POWERFUL QUESTION IS “EMBEDDED” IN OUR LIFE STORY?

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What does it mean to say that our Powerful Question is “embedded” in our life story?

We like to think we know ourselves through our actions, thoughts and feelings, what we choose to do and what we choose not to do. Over time these form patterns that become themes we live by and expect to occur. By the time we reach adulthood most of us know ourselves at a level we consider “good enough.”

Within these themes however, is a question that reveals a deeper truth about ourselves. That question may have been repressed for any number of conscious and unconscious reasons, but also to help us avoid the state of “not knowing.”  We generally avoid things that create anxiety, and not knowing something at the core of who we are can do just that.

However we push it to the back of our awareness, that question, and that lack of knowing, is ever present “embedded” in all of our ways of being in the world.

Prayers Needed

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I was notified this past week that a major Catholic magazine and book publisher is interested in the newest version of “Finding Your Powerful Question.” I am in discussion regarding specifics and hope I can share more soon.  Please pray for the success of this endeavor.    

AND

This Wednesday evening I will be presenting Powerful Question to students at Northern Michigan University, in Marquette, Michigan through their Catholic Campus Ministry. Students will be invited to find the question embedded in their life story that will lead them to their role in God’s plan. Please pray for this effort. 

Living Into My Powerful Question During Covid by Sue Repa

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First, I received my Powerful Question, then Coronavirus spread around the world. We were all affected ln some way.

My Powerful Question is: “What is the good ln suffering?”

I felt well-armed, ready to face this pandemic, living Into my question was a blessing; being the person who is the “silver lining, the Mr. Rogers – `Look for the helpers’ type.” I looked to my Powerful Question as a way of doing my part.

I pondered what is really important in Life. The things I worried about before seemed so small and in-consequential after Covid. priorities changed. I realized the preciousness of each day and the importance of friends and family. It is a gift to re-organize Life and set new priorities.

In this process of looking for the good, I have discovered something new about myself. Covid has been a personal challenge. I am stronger, more resilient, more capable than I realized. Because many of us have experienced great sorrow during this pandemic our capacity for the positive feelings of joy, love and gratitude are heightened.

Being really sad helps us to appreciate feeling good! The gift here is I have more feeling in the experience of Life and the gift of each new day. I have gained a capacity for greater faith. We don’t always ponder our existence. usually, during loss, we realize we are a part of something much larger.

I am open to a new spiritual view as a result of my Powerful Question, We can choose to believe there is an order and purpose to our life, even if we cannot understand it now. I open myself to the questions that can be answered — (what and how) -What am I to learn from this experience? How can I grow from the many losses?

Skills to suffer through loss are good skills to have for living. Real growth means enduring through the hard times instead of avoiding them. We learn the importance of loving those around us and learning patience with self and others.

There is also good in having a greater sense of compassion and connection to others. People drawn together in crisis often form a deep and lasting connection to each other. My Powerful Question has been so helpful to me and the people around me. Sure, there are some who are annoyed by people like me. The “Pollyanna” type (always optimistic) – some just want an outlet for their fear and anger.

My Powerful Question has prevented me from sliding down the slippery slope of despair. How can I help people go on?

• By extending the hand of sympathy and compassion.

• By finding the good

• By being generous and true

• By comforting those who can’t go on

It has taught me many things. It has required me to suffer, but it compelled me to reach.

Living Into My Powerful Question During Covid by Patty Robinson

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I received my Powerful Question -“How Does This All Fit ln” -at a retreat for Pastoral Associates held in November 2019. Covid came on the Scene several months later and changed the world’s landscape. Our ministries went Into hibernation. My pastoral partner, Sue, and I realized the pandemic was impacting the parish budget. We retired to prevent the awkward situation of the parish having to let us go.

A new reality settled in. It prompted me to settle down and Settle into a new, calmer routine. My grandson u.am had to have his virtual classroom at my dining room table. His parents were each considered essential workers and could not be with him. Because he has special educational challenges, he. had to have a helper. I was the logical choice. Our home had to be quiet as a chapel. Even the clacking of text messages on my phone disturbed him. He required me to be near to assist at any given time throughout the day. Initially, it was frustrating. He didn’t like virtual school. He couldn’t concentrate. He cried. He resisted. He hated change. He was angry at Covid. I learned more about his inner strengths, his desire to learn and his devotion. I admired him more and more. I learned to lean into this process. Everything held second fiddle until school was over each day – laundry, cleaning, baking, cooking, sewing, writing, reading, The rosary beads were often in my hands.

I used my grandma’s Sears Kenmore sewing machine to make hundreds Of masks and surgical caps for the hospital just a few minutes away. I felt kinship with my grandma, who purchased the machine in 1941 and used it to make bandages for the Red Cross during World War 11, waiting to hear word from her son, my dad, who served in the US Navy. My prayers joined her prayers uttered many years before. Covid didn’t make me lose the connections across eternity.

I indulged in reading many books on a wide variety of subjects. I wrote notes and cards to friends and family. I found new ways of connecting.

Truthfully, I liked the `cocooning’ Covid forced us all into. My prayer life mimicked a cloistered nLJn. I felt the consoling presence of the Holy Spirit and the power of Spiritual Communion. My hunger was met anew each day. With that wonder and awe, came also points of caution, however.

There were moments of sheer panic. How does Covid ft ln? ls this ushering in a new necessary distance in relationships? I tend to have social anxiety and was honestly relieved that I could just stay home. Would that change me into someone who can’t leave her home? Would I let it?

What about hugs? ‘What about gathering at the table? What about the conflicting voices confirming or denying Covid’s lethality? What about the political divide that deepened? How can relationships mend when a mask has now become such a potent symbol of our divergent thoughts?

Overall, my Powerful Question is a blessing. It has helped me take the `long view’ of the current reality with the pandemic. I continue to seek ways that I fit in as a hopeful helper. My time in prayer has given me balance and peace. I recognize my connections and realize that cocooning is a solo activity from which good things can emerge.