The prayer of review begins with thanksgiving. At least that is the recommendation of St. Ignatius of Loyola. It is one of the most important forms of prayer for him. Even if the Jesuit did not keep other prayer times during the day, he should not skip this prayer. It is about recognizing where God is present in one’s life and how one responds to this presence. All too often this is seen as a mere „examination of conscience“. A moment where you only look at your own mistakes. Often even without turning it into a prayer. But the idea is different. It is about becoming aware of the Lord’s presence. And then to review the day with him. Not only to look at the good and the sinful, but also to consciously look at the inner stirrings. Where was peace? Where was there discord? What was the inner attitude before the demand for mercy? Where consolation? Where was resistance? What thoughts came to me in the respective situations? To recognize His work in our own lives. But to take a good look, Ignatius invites us to start with thanksgiving. Thanksgiving allows us to see more objectively, more clearly. It places us in an attitude of openness and readiness, in an attitude of acceptance and receptivity. This is a good quality in purely „human“ terms, without bringing God into it. As adventurer Megan Hine once said, „Acceptance helps us shed our emotional baggage and think more clearly because we are no longer wasting our energy fighting reality.“ Turning it into a prayer adds a whole other dimension.
Among other things, I would like to use this summer to take a deeper look at my personal live, but also at what the Lord is doing among us, where He is leading us. And so I would like to start right away with saying thanks, thanking Him first of all. He is sooo good! And sooo much has happened this year. First and foremost, I think of the silent work of God in the hearts of so many. The most beautiful and greatest things He does are invisible to most people at first. It happens in secret. I and my fellow brothers can be witnesses to this, through hundreds of hours of personal accompaniment, confessions, prayers for healing and deliverance. I am also grateful that we were allowed to start the construction, that no one was injured and that we have been able to pay all the bills so far. I am grateful to you for your generosity, be it through your financial help, your prayers, your practical help with the building and so many proofs that you want to live „ownership“ for the common vision: to lead more people to Jesus. A very special thank you to those who have never seen the center, perhaps never will, and yet believe in what the Lord is doing among us and support it with great determination, boldness and their financial resources and otherwise.
I would like to thank our „All-Staff“, the paid and voluntary staff who have committed themselves to a certain ministry. I am grateful to Eva, who led our Music Ministry so faithfully and well until recently. I am thankful that we have our first full-time MPD missionary among us and, God willing, that another full-time missionary will soon join us. I am of course also grateful to all the volunteers who may not have been able to commit in the same way as the „All-Staff“, or who are not currently able to do so, but who are nevertheless participating in the common cause.
I would also especially like to thank those who need a break from „ministry“, who are going through a „season“ of refueling, but who also allow themselves to do so, and who, through their faithfulness where the Lord has placed them, their prayer and their devotion to the Lord in the here and now, are just as much a part of this community that we call Church.
Speaking of prayer. Thank you to all those who have taken part in adoration for the intentions of the congregation on Monday and Tuesday evenings over the past few months. Thank you also to those who have walked the path with us for a while, but who are now „at home“ or involved elsewhere. A special thank you to our families for your example of faithfulness and dedication and efforts to live a Christian life, to walk a path of faith with your children – not an easy thing to do – and for that a word of respect and thanks. This year we were also able to experience how the Lord gave us a lot of support in some areas. I am thinking, for example, of the BeFree Mass and the general tendency, not only among us, for very young people, who perhaps do not have all the previous burdens of older generations around faith and the Church, to find faith anew or for the Lord to do something that is not yet entirely foreseeable where it will lead. I am grateful to our BeFree members, but also to all those who attend the YP Mass and embark on the path of true discipleship.
I would also like to thank the Lord for an area that is challenging. Namely for the cross, which of course has manifested itself in different ways this year. „We know that all things work for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.“ (Romans 8:28) That is a true sentence.
I would also like to thank the closest circle of employees who put so much heart and soul into their work every day. Thank you to David, Kathi, Klemens, Annalena, Thomas, Hannah, Julia … but also to those members of the „Regnum Christi“ family who support us on a day-to-day basis, especially in the areas of projects, fundraising and legal advice: Gerd, Judith, Franz, Anna, Ferdinand and a few more. Last but not least, a big thank you goes to my fellow brothers. #ilovemycommunity. We are far from perfect. But I know: #theyhavemyback. And that alone is such a gift. To have fellow brothers in the Lord who are deeply rooted in the Lord and genuinely love Him, who I can trust and who support what is happening here. And we should also thank our parents and families who support our vocation, with all the sacrifices it means for them.
Please pray for us too. We are definitely praying for you. Have a blessed summer!
