Special to Canadian Catholic News
Embrace the opportunity to work in ministry if you can, says Mike Landry, youth chaplain at Evergreen Catholic Schools in Spruce Grove, Alberta.
“The fact that the daily Mass and prayer … can be a part of your life and your routine — that’s a gift,” he says.
Landry was the featured guest on the inaugural episode of “The Personal Vocation,” with host Jermaine Bagnall. The father of five chatted with Bagnall about his Catholic faith, fatherhood, work, and how they all weave together to form his life’s calling.
A driving force behind Landry’s chaplaincy and service is a personal experience at 15, when his family life changed drastically and he felt unmoored. It was his youth minister who helped him find community and, from there, Christ. He was set afire with faith and knew at that young age that he needed to be active in the Church.
Landry takes his youth ministry to heart and passionately lives it out. As a chaplain with more than two decades of service, he takes great joy in walking with Catholic young people, helping them tend to the seeds of faith that have been planted in their heart.
“There’s nothing quite like journeying with somebody week in and week out over time, watching them grow and flourish,” he says.
In his interview with “The Personal Vocation,” Landry speaks about the power of planting seeds. He shares how, in his father’s last days, he called upon a priest who was one of his former students. Two other young men from among his students also followed the call to the priesthood and several teens who met through his youth group later married. This point of joy and awe reminds Landry that his ministry will continue to bear fruit as long as he keeps answering his personal call.
“The Personal Vocation” is a YouTube Channel and podcast hosted and produced by Jermaine Bagnall. The channel is intended to inspire Catholics to cultivate their faith and live out God’s mission for them.
Bagnall is a freelance producer with Salt + Light Media and was a student in the inaugural “Telling Truth in Charity: Introduction to Catholic Journalism” course, offered by Canadian Catholic News. Look out for more of Bagnall’s conversations with Canadian Catholics here on CCN.
Listen to the interview with Mike Landry here.
