The “ordinary” experience of God

Peter Kuruc (Brotherhood of Baptists): “While thinking about the meaning of life, I realized that I was missing something. So I started looking for it in many things in this world. I was looking for it in friendship with my friends with whom we weren’t very nice flowers, and sometimes we did what they did. And indeed, there was a time when these childish mischiefs filled me. Over time, however, I had the opportunity to take faith a little more seriously with my parents. My grandmother and I sometimes went to church, but it was just a forced sermon for me to hear a sermon, and it didn’t mean anything to me at the time. It wasn’t until one Sunday that we got to the Evangelism in Nevada, which was in the local BJB church. As always, I played with something during the sermon, and I was not at all interested in what the gentleman up there wanted to tell me by his story. But during the sermon, he mentioned one thought: “Only in Jesus Christ will I find the seeker of the meaning of my life !!!” And this was the thought I needed to hear; these were the words exactly for me. I was wonderfully lucky to find the meaning of my life in God and slowly show me over time what the main mission is for my life, never more than I can bear, but it approaches me quite patiently and with love, and I have the opportunity to learn new things. Things, to rejoice, to have peace, and to come to what I was made for, so I no longer need to ask what is the meaning of my life, because God has shown me this meaning for a long time, perhaps according to what I have written, it can be a mission, it may be a revelation of God, but that’s not it The meaning of my life is not that I learned about God and then showed me what my mission is I believe that man was created to survive a personal and deep relationship with God, to be honest with Him and allow Him to help Him. To fall before Him and say, Father, I give up. The man was created for a personal relationship with God. And in this, I found the greatest meaning of my life. In the fact that I realized that God is not just somewhere, but that He is beside me and is interested in me and I no longer need to ask – Father, why this, or that, why you committed this or that, I want to humble oneself in front of him and accept what he gives me. To accept what he thinks, I am ready to know, and I do not need more. The purpose of my life is a relationship with God. “

Mark, a Catholic: “At the request of my parents, I received sacraments such as baptism, communion, and confirmation. But the further I went, the more I became disgusted with what my parents wanted, and with that came the obligation to attend Holy Mass. And so, during puberty, my successful weightlifting began, and since my parents did not have time for me, especially for work responsibilities, I began to live as much as I could. The first night parties, discos, smoking, alcohol, the first sexual experience, theft, and lies. At the age of nineteen, I managed to find a job with housing. I decided to quit drugs because I was already beginning to experience feelings of anxiety and loneliness. Still, there was an even bigger spread associated with trips to various rock festivals, … Here, I felt that I no longer control myself and tried to change my life through Hinduism, Buddhism, magic, and the like. But all this drew me even more into the darkness, and I often experienced the urge to leave this world – to kill myself. When I returned home, my parents and siblings noticed that I was different and often had sharp exchanges. The nightmare broke through that night, and the yoga exercises did not help, so I also began to pray and ask Jesus that if he existed, he would help me. The next day I left for drug treatment, where I began to pray here and there. I began to feel saddened by what I had caused my family. A friend suggested I go to confession. I went to the priest and said that I would talk. In the end, I confessed everything I could think of at that moment. After the confession, it seemed to me as if everything had fallen from me, all the things I was worried about as if someone had taken away and filled with the joy of living, breathing, that I could walk, that there were people around me. I was overwhelmed by unspeakable happiness that could not be described. For repentance, the priest commanded me to pray a certain prayer. During it, I felt like a voice in my heart, as Jesus was telling me, “You called me that night, so I came.” And that’s when I first experienced that God exists, that Jesus is real and alive even now. I sensed his closeness that he cared about me, understood me, and seeing into my heart, he knew everything I was experiencing. Whenever possible, I prayed, asked Jesus what to do, and asked for help. Things began to change gradually. After two weeks, the doctor wrote in a report that I did not show any withdrawal symptoms after the drugs. But my parents also took me for a special treatment to the second center in Košice, where patients usually spend six weeks. After two weeks, I was told that I could go home if I wanted to, but that I would definitely be back. I still felt God’s power and wisdom in all actions, and daily prayer to be kept in joy and zest for life. After two weeks, I went home and never returned. After these events, my way of life began to change quite significantly. One significant change is that I have had no drug or urge to start again for nine years. Immediately after returning from healing, I began to go to Holy Mass by myself to listen to God’s word, pray, and partake of the sacraments. The girls’ relationship gradually changed (no relationships due to sex and enjoyment – it was a long process of transformation and purification, which in part still takes place). We started a community of young people in our city who desired to live a relationship with God together. Gradually, God led me through various missions – the Missionary School in Podolínec, from there to Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, again a missionary school to a bachelor’s degree at a university the field of missiology. “(In redemptorist. SK)

Bernardone, a Catholic: “Once during the summer holidays, when my girlfriend was abroad, I decided to pray every day. Hello, may the Lord show me, despite Mary’s intercession, what to change or what is wrong. Not a week has passed, and I am beginning to pray again. Taking my grandmother’s book, which just died a few months ago. And a little miracle came. It fell out of my hand when it was opened. I noticed that something else had fallen out of it, some tiny piece of paper, so I cut it under the table to put it back there, but when I picked it up and looked at it, I was stopped by the words on it. Somewhere in the middle of that little text, it was written: Are you a real man? Do you respect your girlfriend if you want her to be as pure as you would like to have your wife? ”It was exactly after I prayed and asked God to show me what was wrong with my life. I have been afraid to answer this question for a long time, and without this event, I do not know when I would have answered it. I always felt reluctant to acknowledge this mistake and sin, so I actually give it up. But on this day, strengthened by prayer and this “accident,” I only felt a chill on my body, and at that moment, I knelt and started praying again. I don’t know if it was a prayer again, or really for the first time in my life. More than an hour, I don’t know exactly, I overlooked the time, confessing to God my grievous sin; it was literally as if I had to cut off a part of myself. But then there was another crying, for joy. Feeling detached from all chains, it was crying from happiness. It seemed to me as if God was embracing me, and prayer was no longer Father or Hail. Still, I whispered and repeated to God; he professed love or just knelt without words. As if he didn’t even think about anything; I don’t know if I went to confession the next or the third day. He was born again. From that weeping night, my whole life started from the very beginning of change, not today. Still, from hour to hour lo, I started smiling, slowly overcoming obstacles that seemed difficult to me before. Especially my two main sins against purity (masturbation and premarital sex) completely disappeared, even though many friends and media articles told me that it was it’s natural. You can’t get rid of it. The temptations have indeed come, and even stronger, but also their smooth handling. Of course, many other sins arose that I hadn’t even noticed before, but even that began to fade and improve slowly. Since then, I have been filled with a desire for God, a desire to believe and prove the impossible. Words from the gospel have been etched in my heart forever, which give me great strength and courage: “If you have faith like a mustard seed and say to this mountain, ‘Get out of here!’ And nothing will be impossible for you. ”(Mathew 17:20)“ (Redemptorists. SK)

Richard Čanaky, bodybuilder, Catholic: “My parents did not raise me in the faith, but through my extended family, I still had the opportunity to learn something about God. My big scarecrow was school. It was my endless match. Elementary school was like a nightmare. At school, I worked my way up to three out of behavior, which at the time was like a crime. Looking in the mirror, I knew I had to do something with my character. I started dancing in folk dances. My great role model was and is my brother. He knew how to work very hard on himself, and that motivated me to perform. When I was about sixteen, I made 3,620 clicks, which was an unofficial world record at the time. That also held me back for a few days. Later, I started bodybuilding, even competitively, and my character suddenly began to take on different shapes. This was also noticed by the peers – which aroused their respect and the girls, which I noticed a lot. Gradually, I wrapped it up and ended up in a kind of consumer-style, where normal untied sex, alcohol, cigarettes, bars, discos, “quotes” life in quotes. Suddenly, in addition to sports, I started jumping headlong into relationships with girls. In addition to everything, I also practiced martial arts. Jet-Kune-Do – this style charms metal. I devoted myself intensively to it, as well as meditations and especially Silva’s method. I had my own homemade battle altar and my black kimono, in which I spent a Christmas and ate rice with chopsticks at the Christmas table. I gave myself to it in body and soul. Since my school landed at freezing and my education ended up in an apprentice without a high school diploma, I worked as a plumber-maintenance worker. I was proud of that job. However, my future wife motivated me to go to evening studies, so in addition to work, I spent the evening again at the school desk three times a week. I thought it would be boring, but this is where my life story began to be written. I sometimes showed my classmates a blow to the wall or chairs, and one guy noticed. We started talking and started asking me about Christianity. He started talking about Jesus. He spoke of himself meeting him, what he is going through now, and what Jesus has for every person who accepts him into his heart. At first, I successfully opposed it, but something inside began to erode me. My evening meditations at the “altar” became chaotic. Something was driving me to the people who led the prayer communities at the rectory. At the first meeting, we knelt and prayed. We didn’t know-how. We did not want to pray classical prayers. We felt a special atmosphere. The presence of someone invisible but strongly present. We wept, and today I know we were touched by the Holy Spirit. My friend also came to our next meeting and prayed with us. He had previously asked us if we would like to know Jesus Christ personally and if we were willing to accept him as our Lord and Savior. My answer was clear, and in this prayer, I already knew that my life was beginning. That prayer was beautiful in what was coming but terrible in what I was leaving. While praying, I fell to the ground and struggled terribly. At one point, time seemed to stop, and I had to decide between darkness and light. However, my decision for Jesus was not easy. As if darkness was pulling me back. It was difficult for me to say the name, Jesus. I tried, but it didn’t work. My friends kept praying, and gradually I got it out of me. At that moment, an indescribable peace filled my interior. My decision was clear. Jesus became my only Lord and Savior. From that moment on, a boulder left my heart, and my shell broke. I started living in the light. Our community has started. I graduated successfully, and we started serving. The music became mine, not a hiding place, but like a terrace, a roof from which I can scream and sing about what God has done for me. The fear of school disappeared, and I went to college. After five years of full-time study, I held a diploma in my hand. That’s when I realized that nothing is impossible for God. Prayer, fasting, family, and fellowship have become my new values, and I have begun to live the life that God has long prepared for me. Today I am married, have a great wife and two wonderful children, a daughter and a boy. I know that Christianity is not a rosy story from a fairy tale but a real reality worth living in. You may say that there are many paths to God. Yes, but only one leads to the supreme – heavenly Father, the one God. That way is Jesus Christ. The Bible speaks of our lives and our many promises in this age and the future. It is a guide to living your life here on earth and building your relationship with God. We are looking forward to heaven, but our time is right here and today. God has a way out for every wandering and uncertainty. Age and the number of sins are not decisive. All you need is your decision, and your life can change. You may say that you do not need a change, that you are satisfied, but then you do not know the adventure that awaits you with Jesus. An adventure with lasting consequences – eternal life. You can decide today. Tomorrow is too uncertain. ”(Richardcanaky. SK)