One of the many perks of working at EWTN is the ability to go on two annual one-day retreats – one during Advent and one during Lent. This year, our retreat fell on the same day that Deacon Bill died.

That was good in that it meant many employees would be up at the Shrine in Hanceville praying for his soul. But it also meant some employees did not get to go to the retreat since they were (happily) involved in activities honoring the life of a man who gave so much to the Network.

Fortunately, the Network always audiotapes the retreat talks for employees who couldn’t go, or for those who would like to hear the morning and afternoon talks again.

Fr. Bill Casey, CPM

This year, our retreat master was Fr. Bill Casey, CPM. Fr. Casey is well-known to EWTN viewers for his excellent Lenten series, which EWTN has been airing since 2002.

I had the opportunity to listen to CDs of the talks on a long drive this past weekend. Father’s afternoon talk was so good that I couldn’t wait to get in on Monday to see if I could make it available to the growing audience of “Inside EWTN!”

Fr. Casey graciously granted his permission to post the talk. I highly recommend that you download this talk and play it on one of the drives you take with your family this summer.

You will learn why – no matter how bad things seem –  you should NEVER again say, “Oh well, what can I do?” As Father explains, there are always plenty of things – really GREAT things – that you and I can do. Listen to this talk to find out more!

During the talk, Father also relates a story about Blessed Mother Teresa that I have never heard before. Like most of you, I love Mother Teresa and I love hearing new stories about things she said and did.

In this case, a young man was visiting with Mother Teresa’s sisters to see how they did their work with the poorest of the poor. At one point, he said, “Mother, I wish I had your vocation to work with people who are destitute.” Mother said, “I do not have a vocation to work with the destitute.” The young man said, “Of course you do! Everyone knows that!”

But Mother replied, “Oh no. That is what I DO. That is not my vocation. My vocation is the same as yours. Our vocation is the undivided love of God.”

Hmmm… What does it mean to love God with an undivided heart? Listen to the CD and find out!

By the way, in seeking permission to make this talk available, I discovered that it is part of a fantastic mini-series with Fr. Casey and EWTN Favorite Fr. Wade Menezes, CPM, called “Thirst for Truth: Battle For Souls,” which will air this fall.

The series was filmed at an actual retreat at St. Patrick Catholic Church in Kokomo, Indiana, and includes behind-the-scenes footage of the priests preparing for the retreat and the impact that the talks had on some of the retreatants.

I hope this sneak peek at one of the talks whets your appetite for the larger series. I’ll let you know when it’s scheduled to run!