From Venezuela Jorge Lam's path to Washington D.C. has been marked by a constant search for meaning, service and response to God's call. What moves a young person today to consecrate his or her life to God in the midst of a fast-paced, digital culture full of uncertainty? What does it mean to discern a vocation when the world offers such diverse and changing paths? Jorge offers a close look at the value of discernment and how faith can transform daily life.
Roots and vocation
Jorge was born in Caracas, Venezuela. Since he was a child he was linked to the Regnum Christi: first through Missionary Family with his family, and then in the ECYD, where he discovered a lifestyle that left a deep impression on him. In the period 2020-2021 he served as collaborator of the Regnum Christi and at the end of that year he began a process of discernment with the consecrated laity. On August 17, 2024 he made his consecration.
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He currently lives in Washington, D.C., where he studies two careers at The Catholic University of America: Mercadotecnia and Theology. Its goal is to be able to work in apostolates and technology projects that evangelize . society from the digital world. In the territory, he collaborates in the youth section of the Regnum Christi in Washington, accompanies the collaborators of Everest Academy and participates in youth ministry activities.
LTC, partners and the accompaniment of young people
After imparting this year a course on the charisma of the Regnum Christi to the young people who attended the Leadership Training Course in Chicago, Jorge participated also as a trainer at the summer course for employees from the North American territory, in Sacred Heart Vocational Center from Indiana. There he worked alongside Tony Macdonnell, also a consecrated layman, in a three-day workshop entitled The Masterpiece Within (The inner masterpiece).
«The workshop was focused on helping them discover their mission as lay people in the world. We worked on themes of self-knowledge: personal history, natural talents, charisms, sensitivities to the needs of the world... and how to read all this in the light of their present context. Then we give themito help them to ground it in a more effective way. work apostolici. It was very enriching to accompany them in this process.», explains Jorge.
What struck him most was the openness with which the young people experienced the course. «We had personal dialogues in which we talked about their dreams, about what they had been carrying inside for a long time and perhaps had never verbalized. It was nice to help them recognize the gifts that God had already given them and how they could respond to those gifts.».
During those days, several participants began to rethink their future. «Many discovered things about themselves that they had not recognized. Some even began to rethink their study or career plans because they realized that there was a mission that had always called them inside and that they could do something about it. Some spoke of evangelizing from academia, film, education or even digital evangelization.».
A university for life
For Jorge, the experience of being a collaborator represents a formative stage of great value. «For me, being a collaborator is like a university for life. It is a year in which you learn to lay the foundation for your relationship with God for the future. You live with a chapel at home, and that allows you to develop a deep prayer life. You learn to live in community, to serve and also to face conflicts with charity.».
In addition, he believes that this year leaves a mark that transcends the spiritual. «It is a year in which you grow a lot humanly. You gain communication skills, you learn to deal with all kinds of people and you become a trainer. And then you take all that with you wherever you go back: to your section, to your university, to your future job. It's a year that multiplies everything else».
When asked what advice he would give to a young person who is interested in becoming a collaborator, Jorge answered: «I would tell him to be surprised. Sometimes we think too much about what we are going to “lose” to give a year, but we don't really realize what is gained. A year goes by fast, but what you receive marks you forever. It is a school of giving, and learning to give is what gives meaning to all of life.».
Marking experiences and the value of discernment
Among the memories that most impacted him during the course, Jorge mentions a significant coincidence. «Tony and I met there with Fr. Jaime Lorenzo, who was also a formator at the summer course.. It turned out that Tony had been Fr. Jaime's spiritual director when he was a university student at Catholic University of America, Jaime had been my formator in the ECYD in Caracas when I was 14 years old and he was a brother in apostolic practices. I was impressed to see how, without realizing it, three generations of formators were united working together to form the next generation.».
That experience also led him to reflect on the meaning of discernment, a central theme in his life and in the accompaniment of young people. «In the end there is nothing that truly fills the deep desires of the human heart more than God. We can try to control our future from our own strengths, but our ideas will always be limited. Instead, when one opens oneself to discover what God dreamed for one - what is already written in the depths of one's own history - everything begins to make sense.».
«God is a good Father who cares, who guides and who always wants the best for us. That is why it is worthwhile to discern: not to get complicated, but to let ourselves be surprised. His plans always surpass ours,» concludes Jorge Lam.
