A Fascinating Adventure

Mission has become a fascinating adventure, peppered with challenges that introduce me to a new people in a new culture in a new society. I'm pleasantly surprised every day.

The journey has its difficulties, but it is possible to walk with cheerful enthusiasm if we are willing to open our hearts to receive all the new things that God is giving us. There is always a fresh story that motivates me to continue, good news that renews my hope and strengthens my spirit and missionary vocation.

I enjoy the beautiful adventure of the mission that God has offered to me as a token of His love and trust. I live happily and am grateful for the welcome of the Filipino people, for the gift of their smiles, their meals, their liturgical celebrations; their sorrows and joys. Each experience shows me that God is alive among His people, among my friends and companions in the mission, and that God "hears the cry of His people and goes with them wherever they go."

Antonio J. Salas Villagómez is a Columban lay missionary in Pagadian City, Zamboanga del Sur, the Philippines.