Living Up to God's Call: Reflections from the Los Angeles Catholic Prayer Breakfast
By Rosie Chinea Shawver
Executive Director of the Catholic Campus Ministry Association
This morning’s Los Angeles Catholic Prayer Breakfast at the LA Cathedral was nothing short of incredible. Over 2,000 of us gathered for a powerful experience of community, prayer, and inspiration. The morning began with the Rosary, followed by a beautiful Mass, and concluded with a heartfelt message from Fr. Mike Schmitz. His words echoed in our hearts as he asked: Imagine if we all lived up to the potential God is calling us toward? Imagine the transformation—what our world could look like if each one of us embraced the mission God has for us. Fr. Mike’s message left us reflecting on what it truly means to answer God’s call in our everyday lives.
But there was one story that stood out—a powerful testament to God’s mercy that resonates with anyone who has ever felt unworthy of forgiveness.
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A True Story of Divine Mercy
A relatively young priest was visiting his parishioners in the hospital when a nun stopped him and asked for help. She pointed him to a man on his deathbed who had rejected every priest that tried to visit. Although reluctant, the priest went into the room, only to be met with a barrage of curses and anger. He left, but at the nun's insistence, he returned, offering only to sit and pray the Chaplet of Divine Mercy.
As the priest began praying, the man burst out, “Stop it! There is no mercy for me!” He then told the priest about a tragic accident years ago where his drunken negligence caused the death of a family. The man believed he was beyond forgiveness.
But as the man shared the details of the accident, the priest realized something incredible. Twenty-five years ago, his own family was killed in the very accident the man described. With great compassion, the priest told the man, “My brother, God forgives you. Not only that, I forgive you.”
In that moment, the man understood that God’s mercy was truly for him. He made his confession, received Communion, and died in peace two days later. Mercy had won.
The priest later searched for the nun who encouraged him, but was told that the hospital didn’t employ any nuns. Years later, during a visit to the town of Vilnius, he saw a painting of St. Faustina and realized that she had been the one guiding him that day.
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This story, shared during the breakfast, reminds us of the boundless mercy of God. No matter how far we fall, no matter the weight of our failures, God’s mercy is always there for us - if only we are willing to receive it.
Fr. Mike’s call to imagine a world where we live up to God’s call is challenging but deeply hopeful. We often hesitate because we feel unworthy or incapable, like the man in the hospital. But just as the priest showed, sometimes the very things we believe disqualify us are what God can use to reveal His mercy to others. In a world that so often feels broken, we are invited to be vessels of that same Divine Mercy.
This morning, I found myself reflecting on my own potential, on the areas where God is calling me to grow, serve, and love more deeply. What might happen if we all embraced that challenge? If we allow God’s mercy to shape us, just like it shaped that man on his deathbed, then perhaps we can become the instruments of transformation this world so desperately needs.
As we go forward from this prayer breakfast, let us remember that God’s mercy is for each one of us, and with it, we are called to live boldly, love deeply, and reflect Christ’s mercy to a hurting world.
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