Sister Rose Claire Nanjira
THE LOVE OF GOD
As I reflect on my spiritual journey, my heart is full of gratitude for all that the Lord has done for me. Faith is a gift from God and I do thank God for all the graces that He has granted unto me to be able to grow in faith.
Being brought up in a Christian family has contributed a lot to the deepening of my spiritual journey. Whenever I look back at the way my grandparents on the side of my dad changed their religion from Islam to Catholic, I feel encouraged because they were able to endure all the challenges that they faced after moving from one religion to another. They were also able to pass the value of faith to my parents who passed that value to me. My faith started growing stronger when I was baptized at the age of ten because I knew the task was to live the promises that I had made to God. I was called to put my faith into action through my daily activities. My desire to be a Sister grew stronger in me as I admired my aunt who is a nun in a Carmelite Convent. When I joined high school, I did not think too much about sisterhood but concentrated on my studies. Later I realized God was calling me deep within and I tried to listen to what that call meant in my life. I went to talk with my aunt about my desire and she gave me the contacts of her Congregation and that of the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word. I wrote to the Vocation Promoters in both Congregations and when they replied, I responded to the apostolic one, because I felt my call is to actively serve Godís people. I continued to communicate with the Vocation Promoter who then was Sr. Francesca Kearns. She invited me to various seminars to get to know more about the Congregation. When I broke the news to my family members and relatives, it was hard for my Muslim relatives to understand the kind of vocation I was choosing.
My faith always called for my trust in God even when things seemed to go in unexpected ways. The most important help in my spiritual journey has been prayer because through it I deepened my intimacy with Christ. Prayer and reflection helped me to realize that I was not alone; the Lord was always accompanying me on my journey. Christ became my best and closest friend in that whenever I felt my faith being shaken, I always found myself clinging to him for strength. During my second year in the Novitiate, I was missioned to one of the slums known as Mukuru. I offered my services as a social worker to the many people that I met everyday. It was both life giving and challenging as I embraced Christ in the poor people. I enjoyed working with them as I embraced them in their brokenness and all this helped me to get in touch with my own brokenness. One unique thing about the slum dwellers is that, though materially they are poor, spiritually they are very rich. I learned a lot from them as they shared their experiences.
I pronounced my First Vows on December 8, 2007, and I was a bit nervous but excited. I was happy as I took my vows despite the challenges and the joys that I do know will keep on unfolding as I start to live my vowed life. I felt strengthened by Christ as I committed my life to him. It is my prayer that in my daily dying and rising, I may be able to live my vows to the full and submit my whole being to God and be able to serve Him and His people whole heartedly. I am grateful to God for having called me to serve Him despite my weakness and for His great love that I have experienced all through my life. I would like to thank God for the special gift of our Congregation and for Sr. Francesca Kearns, who risked coming and fishing me from my village despite the long distance and the poor roads. I would also like to thank my formators Sisters Mary McHale, Rose Nyambura and Mary Tobin for their support, inspiration and all that they have been in my life. They helped me to grow in various ways as I prepared myself to embrace religious life. I would also like to thank my family members, relatives and friends in a special way for their great support and prayers, may God bless them abundantly.
It has taken commitment, sacrifice, determination, hard work, prayer and, most of all, it has taken faith, hope and trust in God to be who I am today. It is my prayer that I may be able to embrace Christ in the persons of a multitude of sick and infirm of every kind, seeking relief at my hands, especially at this time when our country is experiencing a lot of crisis and tension. All of us have been affected in one way or another, and therefore it is my prayer that I may be able to reach out to the people who are coming to Ukarimu Centre for assistance. I desire to be able to provide a shoulder for them to lean on because the majority of them are devastated. May the Lord be praised despite the violence!
