Hello, my name is Nicolas McCrabb! I am a second-year student at Simon Fraser University studying health sciences in the hopes of pursuing a career in nursing, having an affinity for first aid, and helping people. I also enjoy the outdoors. I have been in scouts since the age of 7 and I love to go on hikes and the occasional walks. On that topic, I also love animals, having a dog, a mix between a German Shepherd and a Border Collie, and two cats. My passions in life are Music first and foremost. I play the guitar, the tenor sax, and the trumpet. I also dabble in art, proficient in oil painting and sketching. Finally, I am drawn to craftsmanship, especially woodworking.
I joined CCO in my first year of university, having been approached by a CCO missionary after my very first mass. CCO has had a crucial role in my life. They not only gave me a community which made the transition to university, and my time there after, so much easier, but they also where quintessential, through the various faith studies, in instilling the personal love Jesus has for me. As I hinted to, I am new to the church, having been baptized last easter (2022). My initial conversion was primarily an intellectual one, having been convinced of the merits of Catholicism from YouTube personalities. It was CCO however that really made me convert on a more emotional plane, really instilling the love that Jesus has for me personally. It was also through an event at CCO where I felt the need to spread that message to everyone I could.
Why do I want to be on Mission?
I always knew that Catholicism had a very beneficial effect on society at large, hence my initial conversion, if it worked for others why not me? It wasn’t until that fateful event however, that I really understood the true depth of that feeling. It really stood out to me then, the significance of that personal love Jesus has for me. How my life has only gotten so much better since making that decision to let him into it. I feel more at peace, confident, and sure of myself, even more, I feel like I have a place in this world, that I am cared for. It hurts me looking around at all the people who do not know this love. I do not mean to jump up on the soap box, but today’s society seems to be so full of lost souls. Too many people are sad, lonely, and feeling forgotten. I too was like this, I see so many people in my place not so long ago, but now I know the way out, now I know that Jesus is the answer to relieving this burden.
Hence, why I made the decision to go on mission. People need to receive the invitation from Jesus so that they can be helped like me. I feel that the Lord is calling me to go down this path of missionary work. I have already begun to lead a faith study of my own, to help my fellow peers understand the love Jesus has for them, and mission, I believe, is my next step. To share the word with as many people who need to hear it. Plus, spending weeks in devotion to God, preaching the gospel in a foreign land, with a group of like-minded people my age seems pretty awesome!
