By Deacon Gregory M. Kirk
St. Joseph Church, Galion
I’ve been on retreat this week at the Athenaeum of Ohio, a seminary owned by the Catholic Archdiocese of Cincinnati in Cincinnati, Ohio. The Athenaeum is situated on over 100 acres, many of them wooded, in metro Cincinnati. The quiet here is conducive to study, prayer, and rest. I look forward to the experience every October.
This year, like every year, my greatest spiritual teachers here are found at the local M.E. Lyons YMCA where I drive six miles each morning to swim laps. These spiritual mentors are not priests, deacons, or religious sisters. They are a group of young adults who live with cognitive or physical disabilities, who work at the YMCA as hospitality staff, or janitorial workers. They are employed by Easter Seals, and their manager is a kind, gentle man named Dave Abel.
I’ve come to know some of these young people over the years. Two always stand out. Michael meets me when I enter the Y and helps me sign the guest book. On my way out, he high fives me and exclaims, “have a good one big Greg.” Tony is a young African-American who wears a wrist watch on both arms. Last year he explained to me that he wears two watches because “time is a treasure and I don’t want it to get away from me.” I was going to sit down this morning and catch up with Tony but didn’t – Tony was sitting on his break with his Bible open on his lap, his lips moving silently. Catholics sometimes talk about “holy pictures.” As I observed Tony connecting with his God, through the Word, I knew I was witnessing a true holy picture.
Dave Abel explained to me this morning that he and his wife adopted their 12-year grandchild who lives with special needs, and that his eyes were opened to the challenge people with disabilities live with. Dave supervises his group, mentoring and helping them grow in job skills, and in self-esteem. Dave explained that they are paid for their work, and that some of them will progress and Easter Seals will help them find employment with companies such as Krogers.
Every year as I encounter this group of special young people and their advocate and coach Dave Abel, I think of Jesus telling his followers that they could move mountains, if they believed. Dave is a trainer in mountain moving, and from what I have observed with the young people he is responsible for at the YMCA, they are chipping away, making consistent progress in telling their mountains to move – mountains made of doubt, fear, feelings of inadequacy, and an experience of living at times with a lack of appreciation and understanding.
Watching these young people work, greet patrons, laugh and care for each other, I see the goodness that is present in humanity. And, I see the wisdom of the words Jesus shared, “you can move mountains, if you will believe.”
I’m going home tomorrow, refreshed, rested, and ready to live with the responsibilities God has entrusted to me, with a renewed passion and appreciation. And I’m leaving here once again, knowing I’ve seen faith in action at the local YMCA, a place where a group of young people have taught me again about the value of looking at life, not through natural eyes, but through spiritual eyes.
Maybe you are confronted with a mountain in your life. It might seem like it won’t budge or move, no matter what you do or try. Don’t give up, don’t give in, believe in the God Jesus came to reveal – a God who is always with us, a God who is on our side, a God who wants to take us to new heights and places. A God who wants to help us move the mountains that stand in the way of our living with peace, fulfillment and joy.
As I high-fived Michael on the way out the door this morning, I knew once again that all things are possible, for those who believe. And whenever I am with Dave Abel and his Easter Seal employees, I know it in a way that I could never hope to explain – Jesus is alive.