You Glow Girl!
Have you ever seen someone physically change before your eyes?
Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high mountain, by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white. - Matthew 17:1-2
This past weekend, I witnessed a transfiguration.
Twenty one women entered Bishop Molloy Passionist Retreat House in Jamaica Estates on Friday night not knowing what to expect of their Kairos Weekend. Some were nervous, some frightened, a couple were physically ill.
Yesterday at the closing ceremony, all had a chance to share with the growing Kairos community of family and friends what the weekend meant to them. They were glowing!
It may sound like an exaggeration. People don't really glow, do they?
When they are filled with the Holy Spirit, they do.
It is hard work to prepare for and put on a Kairos weekend, whether it is one that goes inside the prison to bring God's love to the incarcerated, or it is held outside, like this one, bringing the same love to women whose lives have been impacted by having someone they love locked away.
Being a witness to the transformation that takes place on these weekends is probably the closest thing I can imagine to the experience of Peter, James and John when they went up the mountain with Jesus.
They had no idea what would happen, but those of us on the weekend team know how powerful the experience is for the women and for us.
Each time I am on team I become energized. The experience never fails to have an impact on all who attend, team and guests alike.
No matter how much planning goes into orchestrating and scheduling every aspect of the weekend, once the Holy Spirit shows up, it is out of our hands and firmly in his.
I can understand why a third of the women who plan on attending the weekend don't show up. Being invited to a free retreat with strangers, when you have become accustomed to receiving a cold shoulder or rejection from nearly everyone can be suspect. Who would do such a thing for me?
This was our eighth Kairos Outside weekend for the women of New York City, and it is clear the message is spreading. Most of the team members live in the city and many of the guests were from the city, from new neighborhoods and congregations of churches that have not been represented before.
Why do they glow?
These women become part of our growing family, and all barriers come down. They are loved, and so are we!
So, as we come down from the mountain today, all I can say to each one of them is, You Glow Girl!
More to come...
Image credit: milinz / 123RF Stock Photo