Spark Riverside

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Spark Riverside

Welcome to the Spark Catholic Young Adult Community page. We are a community of Catholic young adults in Riverside, CA.

09/09/2021

Announcement: Our SPARK coordinator Claudia Hidalgo is officially stepping down from our team.

It was a challenging year as she took on the biggest task in the new virtual drivers seat. But we shall especially not forget her work, teachings and her words she gave to our community.

She will be missed, but as she moves on, we give her our utmost blessings, and prayers.

Thank you Claudia for taking the time to serve with us! God bless!!!

09/07/2021

Hey Spark community, we hope you all are safe and well. We just wanted to inform you that we are officially on Hiatus until further notice…

However you can still reach us here if you need any prayer requests through DMs. Stay safe out there and God bless!!!

08/22/2021

Many of his disciples, when they heard it, said, "This is a hard saying; who can listen to it?" But Jesus, knowing in himself that his disciples murmured at it, said to them, "Do you take offense at this? Then what if you were to see the Son of man ascending where he was before? It is the spirit that gives life, the flesh is of no avail; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life. But there are some of you that do not believe." John 6:60-64

Many people find challenge in accepting some of Jesus’s claims. He knew people would betray him, or overlook him. Still, he spoke his claims out of love for all, while also based on his Father’s teaching. It kind of reminds me of our world now, and how people quarrel over how to be safe, or how to succeed in the struggle.

While i’m not trying to go into those types of topics here by no means, I pray for people every day. To at least meditate for a bit. To ponder what claims you have trouble believing or accepting. Some find it easier by trusting him. That’s one thing it took for him to provide so many miracles, healing and signs, right? Our world today could sure use more of that. Try to refrain from fear and resentment as you research what you feel to be right. To find what actions can help others right now as well as yourself. Be prudent, and God bless!!!

08/08/2021

In today’s gospel, the Jews show confusion in how Jesus could be of heaven when they know he has earthly parents. Sometimes we as humans can’t quite understand everything of God, therefore this is where the mystery of faith comes in. Jesus puts it simply, “whoever believes has eternal life.” He goes on to explain how He will choose to be with us which is through the bread of life. The concept of bread served a simple purpose but the concept of the bread of life is eternally fulfilling, not temporary. Fellow young adults, it is simple, in order to continue to be spiritually fed and advance towards our eternal life, we must partake of the Eucharist regularly. This is so crucial to our Catholic lives and should be taken seriously. The closer we are to the Eucharist the closer our actions and spirit are with God.

08/01/2021

Reading II: Ephesians 4:17, 20-24
Brothers and sisters:
I declare and testify in the Lord that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds; that is not how you learned Christ, assuming that you have heard of him and were taught in him,
as truth is in Jesus, that you should put away the old self of your former way of life, corrupted through deceitful desires,
and be renewed in the spirit of your minds,
and put on the new self, created in God’s way in righteousness and holiness of truth.
—
In today’s reading, we are reminded that we cannot follow Christ while not fully listening to Him. As young adults surrounded by the secular world, there are many things separating us from God; our social media feeds, entertainment, friends, etc.
As Catholics, our ultimate goal is our true home in Heaven. As Young Adults in a secular world, this is not impossible, but it may be difficult. We need to continue following God and praying always, as with Him, nothing is impossible - His example will lead is to our ultimate Home: heaven.

07/25/2021

"Gather up the fragments left over, that nothing may be lost." So they gathered them up and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves, left by those who had eaten. When the people saw the sign which he had done, they said, "This is indeed the prophet who is to come into the world!" - John 6:12-14

I like this verse, especially that part in particular. Because it shows how Jesus gives to us abundantly, even when we don’t always see it. He gives us more than what we need. Instead of thinking only about us, not getting what we want out of life, maybe we can be grateful for what he has already given and think and pray for others, especially those less fortunate.

He was able to multiply blessings because there’s not always enough to go around in this world. It’s amazing how the bread and fish was split into those twelve baskets to distribute to so many that were starving.

I’ve felt the challenge before too of course, forgetting this in the secular world. Thinking of ourselves all the time might leave us dissatisfied, but thinking of others and being willing to share or reach out might do the opposite. Stay grateful my friends. God bless!!!

07/18/2021

“‘Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.’ …when he disembarked and saw the vast crowd, his heart was moved with pity for them, for they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things.” Mark 6:31,33

Rest- a necessary time to slow down and recharge. Early in adulthood, I learned that rest paired so perfectly with prayer. Sitting down, opening my Bible and journaling allowed for God to reveal many lessons in my heart. So naturally, I love that Jesus tells the apostles to rest.
As a Type A personality though, I have a habit of packing my planner full with things to do - family, work, job search, ministry, health, etc. - and forgetting to have designated rest time.
At one point in life, my prayer and devotional reading in the mornings were my rest - that necessary time to slow down and recharge in the company of Christ. But with a constantly packed schedule, it felt like my prayer life was hanging by a thread at times.

Another aspect that I loved of today’s gospel was that upon seeing the needs of the people, seeing the crowd gather in yearning, Jesus went back to serve! He continued to give of himself! And in the serving, in the packed schedule, I learned that people were still able to pray in that time as well. At first, the idea was shocking because I felt that if I were to try it, I wouldn’t be able to fully focus. But in the midst of a busy work week, I was reminded, “Pray. Offer it up.” My natural, skeptic response was, “ok, if you say so.” And I found the peace in the midst of the chaos.

So even though I prefer designated rest + prayer time, I know Jesus approaches me in my crazy schedule so that even in the busy movement, I have time with Him.

07/13/2021

Hey Spark young adults! We invite you to the last chapter of our epic series on the Social Teachings of the church. It’s never too late to join us, have fun and most importantly to learn. Hope you can make it as we close out our series with the ever so important topic of God’s Creation. Hear and be enlightened by our guest speaker Victoria! God bless!!!

Hey Claudia, quick question just to clarify, should I write for caption:

Here is the link for the 7/22/2021 Spark Night:

http://meet.google.com/rci-tgcp-ekb

Or open Meet and Enter this code: rci-tgcp-ekb

07/11/2021

Good morning Spark community! ✨There are two main points I wanted make regarding today’s gospel. First, Christ sends out his disciples instructing them to take nothing but a walking stick. Jesus knows He is sending his disciples on an incredibly hard mission but only permits them with the bare minimum? Despite this looking “frugal”, Jesus gives his command and blessing for this mission, which is much more rewarding than any material thing. The disciples can leave confident knowing they are doing the will of God and that is all they need to protect and fuel them. Second, the gospel says they went off and preached repentance. Why do you think Mark wrote the word repentance and not “the word of God” or the commandments? Perhaps because God’s mercy through repentance is perhaps the greatest gift. To know that we have a second chance after we have sinned, is one of the most comforting things we could ever hear. That is what is going to convict our brothers and sisters to come to Christ. Happy Sunday!

07/04/2021

Reading II 2 Cor 12:7-10
Brothers and sisters:
That I, Paul, might not become too elated,
because of the abundance of the revelations,
a thorn in the flesh was given to me, an angel of Satan,
to beat me, to keep me from being too elated.
Three times I begged the Lord about this, that it might leave me,
but he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you,
for power is made perfect in weakness.”
I will rather boast most gladly of my weaknesses,
in order that the power of Christ may dwell with me.
Therefore, I am content with weaknesses, insults,
hardships, persecutions, and constraints,
for the sake of Christ;
for when I am weak, then I am strong.
——
How many of us have encountered struggles, and instead of wanting to face them, have ignored them or seen them as punishment from God? In today’s reading, Paul reminds us that these struggles are not in vain, as God is with us. In our struggles, it may seem as God is nowhere near us, but He invites us to call to Him, for His Grace is with us and with Him we can survive anything.

06/29/2021

Hey Spark young adults!! Are you familiar with the Social Teachings of the Catholic Church? It's never too too late to learn, so next Thursday July 8th, dive into two of them with us and our special guest speaker ! We can't wait to share these, We hope you can make it and God bless!!!

To join our Spark night on Google Meet, click this link: https://meet.google.com/vyj-kidh-rwq

Or open Meet and enter this code: vyj-kidh-rwq

06/27/2021

While he was still speaking, there came from the ruler's house some who said, "Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the Teacher any further?" But ignoring what they said, Jesus said to the ruler of the synagogue, "Do not fear, only believe." - Mark 5:35-36

How often do we let our fears get in the way of our goals and what we truly yearn for? Look at all the hope and miracles Jesus provided. Sometimes when you ask him for what you want in your prayers, he finds ways to provide, sometimes it happens sooner. Look at the grieving father, who begged him to save his daughter. Then she woke, even after the crowd had already wrote her off…

Sometimes your prayer is answered later, or maybe it takes an even longer time. Look at the poor women who had a flow of blood. She suffered for twelve years! But when she found him, touched his garment, and was finally healed. Because it finally came from within her, and her willingness to have faith in him. Fear not my friends, only believe.

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Riverside, CA

Telephone

+19514685671

Website

http://www.sparkya.org/

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