I came back to church alone and had a major conversion in front of the Eucharist. Ever since then I have been sharing my faith boldly and in my understanding of it all!

I became Catholic almost nine years ago. A lot has happened since then, but one constant through everything has been my faith. Not only that, it has honestly been instrumental in my career as a baseball player.

My friend had convinced me of the power of the rosary and why I needed to pray it consistently. I took it to heart in awe of his zeal and wisdom on the matter. From that point forward, the rosary has truly changed my life and who I have become as a man.

I ended up entering the Franciscan Missionaries of the Eternal Word in October of 2002 and was ordained to the priesthood in 2012. I'm grateful to God for the gift of the priesthood and the religious life!

God has placed so many people in my life over the years that have given me a full understanding as to what it means to love sacrificially, and I’m just a vessel here in front of everyone for the Holy Spirit and I don’t mind it one bit.

Lauren is a fierce advocate for those with Down syndrome and shares about the beauty and dignity of every life and how those with disabilities bring so much joy to our world.

Right now I am focusing heavily on the Eucharistic Miracles Movie so please keep that in your prayers! God is blessing it tremendously but there is a lot of attack so any support would be awesome!

I have a lot to learn still being a young priest, but I love being a priest. I wouldn’t trade the priesthood for anything in the world.

During the retreat, I had a radical conversion in Adoration. I went to confession, and vowed to change my life. I prayed a prayer "Jesus, you died for me, I'll die for you" and I meant it.

We agreed to meet each week, and he was true to his word for months on end. As we had these encounters each week, the sheer presence of this man in my life brought about healing to my infirmity.

Now I am living out a personal relationship with Jesus, I know He is close, He is my father, I can rely on Him. He is my hope, and purpose in my life.

But that’s the point. We’re human, we make mistakes, and we NEED God. Literally, the only way we can help other people understand their cross, is through COMPLETE dependence on Christ to help us carry ours.

When it was over, the priest was stunned. “What made you come here? What made you return to the Church?’ Jason shared a bit of his story and the priest told him, “Our Lady brought you back.”

As God would have it, He took my small desires for myself and has shown me a life better than I could have ever imagined. As someone who loves to be in control, I had to learn to trust Our Lord by trusting in His promise from Jeremiah 29:11 - that He has great plans for me.

The Lord is moving in great power in my life, and I am on a journey with Him everyday. I am “running the race” (1 Cor 9:24) and endeavoring on this great adventure with Him.

Since that instant my eyes were opened with Michaela, I have now been more liberated to pursue Christ and serve Michaela and my future family as the future father and husband God intended me to be.

I invite you to set aside the misconceptions of needing to earn love and fears of being “perfect” for Christ, because you are loved and pursued by a God who could not love you more than He does right now.

That encounter with Jesus in the Eucharist led me to desire to give my life to Him which led me to discover the religious life and, long story short, I entered my community, the Daughters of St. Paul after I finished my bachelor's degree. And in 2016 I made my final vows!