My parents not only did a great job teaching my siblings and me about the Catholic faith, but encouraged our faith to be our own. In high school I mixed my love of people and my love of Catholicism by attending countless retreats and Catholic conferences. Some of my favorite memories are from traveling with my high school youth group to retreats. Of course part of the fun is the bonding time you get when you travel by bus from Oklahoma all they way to Chicago for a National Evangelization Team (http://www.netusa.org/dweek/ ) Discipleship week, but the rest is by realizing the fervor you have for the Lord that you didn’t know was in you.

After these retreats I would experience a “God High.” This is where I would be incredibly pumped up and ready to spread God’s love after being encouraged and energized by those around me–something that I firmly believe was placed in me by the Holy Spirit.

The most I can remember ever feeling this way was during World Youth Day (http://www.worldyouthday.com/home ) in Toronto. The sheer magnitude of the event was incredible! It’s still hard to wrap my head around the fact that I’m part of a religion that calls young people from around the ENTIRE globe to come together and celebrate their love for Jesus.

World Youth Day brought one of my favorite aspects of Catholicism to an entirely new level. Unity. I was fortunate to be a part of nearly 800,000 people celebrating Mass with Pope John Paul II.

Although we came from 97 different countries, we could all celebrate the Eucharist together. Our church holds such firm traditions that we all knew exactly what incredible things were happening before us, no matter what language we spoke. Coming from a high school where it wasn’t always easy or cool to stick true to my Catholic beliefs and the morals that came with it, I was overcome with gratitude at the community and sense of belonging I felt. This filled me with a sense of hope and encouragement that is simply indescribable.

After leaving prayer groups and worship songs, which are part of such events, to head back into the real world it can become increasingly difficult to remain enthusiastic in my faith. Living in a world filled with sex symbols as role models and where popularity can stem from taking the most shots of alcohol, it’s easy to become discouraged.

There are two responses we as Christians can have to this.  One is to retreat into our own little worlds and seclude ourselves from the rest of society. The other is to go out INTO the world, to engage the world, and to bring Christ’s love to the world as Pope Benedict XVI wrote in his encyclical “God is Love.”

He explained: “Love is the light–and in the end, the only light–that can always illuminate a world grown dim and give us the courage needed to keep living and working. Love is possible, and we are able to practice it because we are created in the image of God. To experience love and in this way to cause the light of God to enter the world–this is the invitation…”

As a young adult Catholic, I choose to accept it!

For a chance to win your own trip to World Youth Day 2011, check out the Goodness Reigns “Share the Story” contest. You can find more information at http://goodnessreigns.com/contest.php .