Learning to Move Slowly with God

When I was navigating post-grad life during my senior year of college I remember feeling so overwhelmed. Should I go to grad school? Should I get a job? Should I move back home? Should I move in with my friends from college? Should I do this year of service thing? These were just a few of the questions that swirled in my mind during the fall semester. I vividly remember meeting with Jenny Rose at my college’s post-grad service fair. I was in awe of how she remembered small details of my life that I had shared with her at the fair the year prior. I remember calling my mom and sharing just how intentional FrancisCorps seemed. Although hesitant, she encouraged me to do more research and see what this year of service may entail. Flash forward to August 2024, my college roommate, Adelaide, and I drove up to the big yellow house and my year at FrancisCorps began. As we said our goodbyes, Adelaide hugged me tight and said, “I simply cannot imagine you anywhere else.” It was that phrase that proved to me that God knew exactly what He was doing when he made a special love for Syracuse in my heart.

Over the past two months, I have been challenged in every aspect of my life. From in-taking 100+ people each week at the Assumption Food Pantry window, to learning how to navigate the world of public health at the Poverello Health Center, I have been challenged to find the grace of the slow work of God. As Teilhard de Chardin writes in his poem “Patient Trust,” we must trust in the slow work of God. And while that is not always the easiest thing, it is quite a beautiful one once you slow down to see it in fruition. I have been fortunate to see the slow work of God in our home on Court Street when someone gets the giggles during our nightly prayer or when another is moved to tears by something that went on at work that day. It is through the slow work of God that I have watched myself grow. I am not the same woman I was on August 3rd when I moved in. I have learned the beauty of slowing down and being present with those around me. During my first week, I worked so diligently to get each task done efficiently. I blocked out all distractions to focus on the task at hand, much like I did in college. With time, I realized that my ministry is not just completing tasks efficiently, but it is also sitting and talking with the other volunteers. It is about chatting with clients at the window (even if the line is to the church doors) and it is about listening with intention to each patient at the clinic. Most importantly, I’ve learned that life here at FrancisCorps is about moving slowly with God.

As I begin to look forward to the rest of the year, I can’t help but be eager to see what else is in store for the six of us. In watching my community members grow, I get eager to see the ways that we will be shaped this coming year. If anything, this year has given me clarity as to what Isaiah meant when he wrote, “O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand” (64:8). It has been such a joy to watch God mold each of us so intentionally, and most importantly he molds us all slowly. As Adelaide said so beautifully just a few months ago, I simply cannot imagine myself anywhere else.

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