Encountering Christ:

We all have our moments when the love of Christ is felt and brought to the surface of our conscious through an encounter with another person, or an event in our day or life.  That overwhelming feeling of love, comfort, and assurance that all is well in your spirit.

This happens so often when doing God’s work through our ministries, in our work, and family life.  It requires a silence and awareness of God’s presence and activity.   

I hope that you will share some of your profound experiences of Encounters with Christ in discussion.

Some of my profound times of encounter are when I am doing one of my ministries.   I take Eucharist to Catholics in one of the hospitals in my home town. I always sit in the Chapel before I start to visit patients and pray that Our Lord will empty me of myself, so that He can work…so that His children hear what He wants to say to them…not what I think. Sometimes I still manage to get in the way, and don’t do His will due to a varied weakness of my own. Usually it is because I don’t want to disturb someone.

On the 4^th floor of this hospital (my favorite floor) there is a statue of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. It sets on a pedestal, just the right height that I can look up ever so slightly into Jesus piercing eyes, so full of love.  I feel that He is truly alive in that gaze, and that those eyes could blink any second. There is so much love there, that I can’t image anyone not being able to feel it if they stop and become silent.  On one particular day when I came out of the stairwell there was a woman there on her cell phone talking and I didn’t want to disturb her so I went on feeling that I missed my brief moment with Jesus, but thought, I will come back when I complete my visits on this floor.  When I came back, she was still there and was upset, making me feel that I didn’t want to disturb her again, so I went into the stairwell and was proceeding to the next floor when  I was stopped in my tracks.  The Holy Spirit said to me “Go back and speak to that woman”. When I turned to go back, not knowing what I was to say, I saw her leaving through the window in the door. I went and stood in front of the statue feeling that I had just let Jesus down.  He wanted her stop and be with Him for a moment, and my only duty was to suggest this to her.  On another occasion I didn’t go into a room where I felt a family needed privacy, and when I got to the 4^th floor and stood before Jesus, He said “I want you to go back to that room….take me there”. I did as I was asked not wanting to repeat my previous blunder, and it turned out to be one of those very profound encounters with Christ. The entire family was there by that time, and very much welcomed me to their prayer time. They all had Holy Communion. I had taken Jesus to them just as He had asked....they wanted that very much.