Steven R. McEvoy Q & A IT Employee Spotlight

Steven R. McEvoy Q & A 

IT Employee Spotlight

What does a typical workday look like for you?

I do not think there is a ‘typical’ day when it comes to working in IT. But I like to arrive around 6:10, and make a coffee and tea, and be at my desk checking the incidents by 6:20am. I often find that my most productive time is between 620am and 9am. Because of my new role I find I am in more meetings, scheduled and impromptu as the day goes on.

What do you enjoy most about your role here?

I like that I get to stay on top of new and emerging technologies. I love that there are so many talented people on my team and across the IT teams to engage with and work with. I love that there is always something new to learn, and that our technological footprint is ever evolving.  

Before working here, what was the most unusual or interesting job that you’ve had?

I was the live on-site year-round director at a Christin Camp, I lived in a cabin on 178 acres and the property was the only one with water access to a private lake. 

What has been your proudest moment so far?

When my 9 year old daughter wanted to spare her brother his surgery and body cast, and wanted to take it on for him. 

If you could meet anyone (living or dead), who would it be and why?

I would meet the fictional character Vlad Taltos from Steven Brust’s Dragaeran series. I would want to have a mug of Klava with him. I would want to discuss his anger, his fury and his growth. 

What has been the greatest challenge that you’ve had to overcome in your life thus far?

I have a dual form of dyslexia. In grade 6 I was told I would never graduate high school. I not only graduated but finished early and as an Ontario Scholar. 

What has been the most important innovation that you’ve witnessed in your lifetime?

Just computing power. My first year at Queen’s University I purchased a 386/25 with a math coprocessor and 4 megs of ram. And In my student house it was the best of the 8 computers. I now have eBooks that are larger than the amount of ram I had on that machine.  To quote Mike Aquilina  "Now we can travel with more books stored in our telephones than the ancient Egyptians kept in their vast library at Alexandria.".

What is one thing that you can’t live without?

Books, I love reading and think I could not survive without books.

What would you most like to tell yourself at age 13?

Listen to the doctors. Let your injuries heal. Sports are not life. You will live much longer than you expect, and all the broken bones, sprains, tears, and separations will come back to haunt you. Learn to choose kindness. Give more and expect less.

What’s one thing that most people probably don’t know about you?

I previously worked as a personal trainer and yoga instructor. Just a few years ago I was teaching 8 classes a week. (But gave it up because of personal convictions.)

Favourite Movie or TV Show:

Reacher or Person of Interest (Updated answer)

Favourite Song:

Gabriel’s Message by Matt Maher

Note: A few years ago, I was asked to fill out a profile for work. It was going to be used internally for corporate communications. It never ended up being used. I stumbled across it recently and liked the answers so decided to share them here for my birthday.

Other Articles Examining Who I Am:
Mad Celtic Warrior, Poet and Priest! - An Essay - 2003
The Journey of a Quester! - An Essay / Spiritual Biography 2004
New Year's 2006
Who Am I? Who Am I? -2008
Confessions of a Bibliophile #5 - How I Became a Bibliophile, From Dyslexic to Addict - 2009
New Year's Goals 2010
Steven R. McEvoy Interview - 2012
2014 My Goals
Who I Am - 2014
Feast of Saint Joseph 2018
I have greatly sinned 

Steven R. McEvoy Q & A IT Employee Spotlight

...

I have greatly sinned … a reflection.

I have greatly sinned … a reflection. 

For many years I felt fundamentally broken. I felt that I was damaged inside. The damage was because of things that had happened to me, and the damage was because of mistakes I had made, some hurt myself, many hurt others. I am not sure 18-year-old Steven, or 25, or even 30 would recognize the Steven of today, who is fast approaching 50.  I was thinking about the Confiteor prayer recently.

(Abandoned St. Agnes Church in Michigan)

Confiteor: 

I confess to almighty Godand to you, my brothers and sisters,that I have greatly sinned,in my thoughts and in my words,in what I have done and in what I have failed to do,through my fault, through my fault,through my most grievous fault;therefore, I ask blessed Mary ever-Virgin,all the Angels and Saints,and you, my brothers and sisters,to pray for me to the Lord our God.

This is one of the prayers that can be used during the penitential rite during mass. Every time we pray it I am reminded of the sins of omission. Words left unspoken, actions left undone. The older I get the more I find when I do my examination of conscience at the end of the day, I find that my failures are often of omission. At the end of the day I try and reflect back, what way my best point today, what was my worst, and what do I wish I could have done better. As I grow there are fewer terrible moments each day, maybe because of mellowing with age, maybe maturity, and a bit of spiritual growth. 

Matthew Kelly’s tag line is ‘become the best version of yourself’. So, when I examine the day I ponder what actions, behaviors, decisions helped me towards that best version of myself and what did not. I have a lot of work still to do. But that is the struggle of becoming a saint. Until we are called home we have room to make improvements. Small improvements, incremental, day by day.

(St. Agnes Waterloo)

In many ways I have bene tempered by time. And that slow journey of discovering who I am and my purpose here. I have so many blessings in my life, my wife, my children, health and an excellent job. But there are times I still feel broken. And in those times, I turn to God through Mary. And I strive to become the best version of myself, to become a saint.

Peace and Strength!
Yours, learning to be
Steven R. McEvoy

Book Reviews and More
McEvoy's Musings
LinkedIN

"Now we can travel with more books stored in our telephones than the ancient Egyptians kept in their vast library at Alexandria."
            Mike Aquilina

“No tea cup is big enough nor book long enough for me to be satisfied.” 
            C.S. Lewis

"When I get a little money I buy books; and if any is left over I buy food and clothes!"
            Erasmus

Other Articles Examining Who I Am:
Mad Celtic Warrior, Poet and Priest! - An Essay - 2003
The Journey of a Quester! - An Essay / Spiritual Biography 2004
New Year's 2006
Who Am I? Who Am I? -2008
Confessions of a Bibliophile #5 - How I Became a Bibliophile, From Dyslexic to Addict - 2009
New Year's Goals 2010
Steven R. McEvoy Interview - 2012
2014 My Goals
Who I Am - 2014
Feast of Saint Joseph 2018
I have greatly sinned 

Steven R. McEvoy Q & A IT Employee Spotlight

...

My definition of real strength

Real Strength

Doing what needs to be done. Saying no to myself when needed; no second deserts, no I won’t skip the planned workout. Going for the bike ride with the kids, when they ask but when I do not really feel like it and am tired and soar. Saying yes to getting up when my alarm goes off because my day goes better when it is not rushed. Striving to be the best version of myself; in body, mind, and spirit. Comparing myself, my life only to who I was yesterday, or last week or last month and not other people and their lives. Saying no to staying up late when I need the rest. That is real strength.


I am a son, a brother, a husband, a father, a friend, and I am Roman Catholic!

Other Articles Examining Who I Am:
Mad Celtic Warrior, Poet and Priest! - An Essay - 2003
The Journey of a Quester! - An Essay / Spiritual Biography 2004
New Year's 2006
Who Am I? Who Am I? -2008
Confessions of a Bibliophile #5 - How I Became a Bibliophile, From Dyslexic to Addict - 2009
New Year's Goals 2010
Steven R. McEvoy Interview - 2012
2014 My Goals
Who I Am - 2014
Feast of Saint Joseph 2018
I have greatly sinned 

Steven R. McEvoy Q & A IT Employee Spotlight

...

Question's, Lists, and Daily Goals

Question's, Lists, and Daily Goals

For a number of years I have journaled on these 5 questions:

Who are you?
What do you want?
Who do you trust?
Who do you serve?
Where are you going?

They come from a Science Fiction show called Crusade which was a spin-off of Babylon 5. Each episode of Crusade began with a series of questions being asked by the narrator to the Captain. And those questions struck with me. Then a few years later I came across this list:

Who am I?
What do I want?
What is my purpose?
What am I grateful for?

And then just last year in one of my devotional readings I came across this list:

Who am I?
Where did I come from?
What am I here for?
How do I do it?
Where am I going?

So if you merge them you get these questions:

Who am I?
What do I want?
Who do I trust?
Who do I serve?
Where am I going?
What is my purpose?
What am I thankful for?

The daily goals I have been using as guidelines for living are:

To get enough sleep.
To eat right & exercise daily.
To refuse to be a perfectionist.
To carefully control finances.
To ask for help when needed.
To pray and read the Bible daily.
To not pressure self into planning entire life today.

And then there are principles to live by, which I got from a book by Dr. James MacDonald, which are as follows:

Eight Principles to Live Your Life by:
I will do all things as unto the lord.
I will live in the light of the judgement seat of Christ.
I will consider my weaker brother in all I do.
I will do nothing unless I'm sure that it's right to do.
I will do all things to the glory of my God.
I will avoid what may appear wrong even if I know it's not.
I will abstain from things that could enslave me.
I will seek always to do what I believe Jesus would do.

A lot has changed over the last year for me and for us as a family. Do you think about who you are? How you got to where you are currently? What are you truly thankful for? 

Currently I use Coach.me to track daily disciplines, physical, mental and spiritual. 

If you had to have a list to live by what would it be?

Related Posts:
New Year's Resolutions 2007
New Year's Resolutions 2008
Michale L. Davenport on The Importance of Goals
New Year's Day 2010
Handbook 2010

Other Articles Examining Who I Am:
Mad Celtic Warrior, Poet and Priest! - An Essay - 2003
The Journey of a Quester! - An Essay / Spiritual Biography 2004
New Year's 2006
Who Am I? Who Am I? -2008
Confessions of a Bibliophile #5 - How I Became a Bibliophile, From Dyslexic to Addict - 2009
New Year's Goals 2010
Steven R. McEvoy Interview - 2012
2014 My Goals
Who I Am - 2014
Feast of Saint Joseph 2018
I have greatly sinned 

Steven R. McEvoy Q & A IT Employee Spotlight

...

Who Am I - 2014

Who Am I - 2014

Lately I have been thinking a lot about who I am? In the past I would journal a few times a year based on the following 5 questions:

Who are you?
What do you want?
Who do you trust?
Who do you serve?
Where are you going?

They come from the Science Fiction show called Crusade which was a spinoff of Babylon 5. Each episode of Crusade began with these questions being asked by the narrator to the Captain. It has been a great experience. Also a recent convergence or serendipitous article I came across was  from the site a website:

Who am I?
What do I want?
What is my purpose?
What am I grateful for?

So for the summer of 2014 let's tackle some of those questions.

Who am I?
I am a husband, father, son, brother and friend. I am a Roman Catholic, a student, an avid reader, a writer.

What do I want?
I want to be good at being. I want to be better tomorrow than I was today. I want to live life at 90%. Making the right choices both in what I do and what I choose not to do, in what I say and what I do not say.

Who do I trust?
This is a hard question to answer. The number of people I trust completely is very small. But I do trust the Catholic Church, the bible. I I trust my wife and my family.

Who do I serve?
I serve God, and my family.

Where am I going?
I am on the journey of life. If you had told me a year ago I would be a fitness instructor I would have laughed at you. So I do not know where I am going but am enjoying the travels.

What is my purpose?
My purpose is to be a good man, a good husband, a good father, a good son.

What am I grateful for?
I am grateful for a father who always taught me integrity and honour, who exhibited a strong work ethic no matter what he did, he did it to the best of his ability. I am grateful for a wife who encourages and supports me. Who calls me out when needed, who has an amazing laugh and wonderful smile. I am grateful for my children, I learn more and more about the importance of being good at being, from being a father then just about anything else. I am grateful for friends and family, I have people I can count on no matter what happens in life they will be in my corner - and that matter more than anything else.

For years my personal email signature file has said: "Peace and Strength!
Yours, learning to be" I am a work in process. Just this week I was asked to write a profile for the DDP Classes I teach at the triFit Gym at work, it was a fun exercise so here are those answers:

Name: Steven R. McEvoy

Class: DDP, RedHot Core

How long have you been teaching? I have been teaching at ChristieFit since January 2014 and currently have 5 classes a week on the schedule. Back in the late 80's and early 90's I worked as a personal trainer while at Queen's University.

What is your work out routine? Currently I do a minimum 25 minutes Body Weight Exercises a day. I do weights once a week. Every few weeks I do a sprinting session, either running or biking. And about once a month I do a full body TRX Force workout.

Favourite exercise? TRX, 7 Minute Workout

What is your favourite vegetable? I love almost all vegetables raw but my current favourites are Kohlrabi or black radish. But I love trying new veggies especially heirloom varieties.

If you could work out with any celebrity, who would you choose? I think it would be cool to work out with either Sylvester Stallone or Arnold Schwarzenegger or maybe Tony Horton.

If you could choose, what would your superpower be? My super power would be to not need sleep. It would give me more time for what I love, reading, writing and working out!

What motivates you? Being a husband and father. I want to be in the best shape I can so that I am a better father, husband, son, brother, friend and person.

How do you find time to exercise? I had to choose to make it a priority. I am currently at over a year of DDP and other exercise every day. Prior to that I had gone almost a year with doing nothing, the results were not good. We all have 168 hours in a week. I made the decision to dedicate a minimum 30 minutes a day to having a healthy body.

Favorite song on your iPod right now? I tend to listen to whole albums and currently the favorites would be George Thorogood's 2120 South Michigan Ave. or Bif Naked's Essentially Naked.

Favorite Dessert? My kryptonite is Ice Cream, and the strongest flavors are mint chocolate chip, tiger tail or heavenly hash.

If you had to describe yourself using a cartoon character, which one would it be? I would be Wile E. Coyote. I may never get the prize but I never give up trying.

And that is my understanding of who I am at the moment. And the question's for you are: who are you? What do you want? Who do you trust? Who do you serve? Where are you going?

Peace and Strength!
Yours, learning to be
Steven R. McEvoy

My Homepage
My Blog
LinkedIN
Twitter - SRMcEvoy
Twitter - YogiByAccident

CompTIA IT PRO, A+ ITT, A+ DT, A+ RST, Network+, Security+
Microsoft MCSE, MCSA, MCP, MCTS, MCITP, MOS
Apple ACTC, ACSP, ACA

"Now we can travel with more books stored in our telephones than the ancient Egyptians kept in their vast library at Alexandria."
           Mike Aquilina

"No tea cup is big enough nor book long enough for me to be satisfied."
           C.S. Lewis

"When I get a little money I buy books; and if any is left over I buy food and clothes!"
           Erasmus

Other Articles Examining Who I Am:
Mad Celtic Warrior, Poet and Priest! - An Essay - 2003
The Journey of a Quester! - An Essay / Spiritual Biography 2004
New Year's 2006
Who Am I? Who Am I? -2008
Confessions of a Bibliophile #5 - How I Became a Bibliophile, From Dyslexic to Addict - 2009
New Year's Goals 2010
Steven R. McEvoy Interview - 2012
2014 My Goals
Who I Am - 2014

Feast of Saint Joseph 2018
I have greatly sinned 

Steven R. McEvoy Q & A IT Employee Spotlight

...

Goals for 2014

Goals for 2014

I have not been a big new year's resolutions person. Maybe because I spent so many years in University that for me the year still begins in September with the beginning of the academic year. But Some great posts got me things, first Sarah Reinhard from Snoring Scholar had a great piece called They're Not Resolutions They're GOALS; and from that she linked to Lisa M. Hendey's piece My 14 Goals for 2014 - What Are Yours? And both of them mentioning Bullet Journal; I watched the video a number of times and love the concept. But working in IT and working across numerous devices I took the Bullet Journal and turned it into an Evernote nested notebooks system. I have templates Monthly Goald, Monthly Tasks, and Monthly Calendar, I have created a notebook for Collections also, and an Index notbook and use Note Links to link it all together. So that being said I am going to elaborate on my goals that were started in my piece: A Chance Encounter, Prayer and Life.

That being said my Goals for 2014 are:

1. Read the Bible Every Day
2. Pray with more focus
3. 2 Blog Posts per Week
4. Eat right, 90% whole foods
5. Exercise Daily
6. Read at least 1 Book Per Week
7. Redacted
8. Redacted
9. Plan at least 1 Date Night per Month
10. Make a retreat
11. Finish at least 1 Computer Certification
12. …

Diamond Dallas Page states that we need to set SMACK goals.

S: SPECIFY - Know what you want to accomplish
M: MONITOR - Monitor your progress
A: ACHIEVE - Find out what you really want
C: CHOOSE - actions compatible with your goals
K: KEEP IT GOING - turn it into habits, make it your ritual

He also states "If we train ourselves we can live life at 90%. Life is 10% of what happens to us and 90% of how we react to it. We can begin to control how we react, how we adapt, and how we breathe and how we take action." He often asks what we want to get out of life. He says "We need to set goals because they are our own map our personal directions. We need to set goals to make ourselves accountable to ourselves." And the way we achieve that is to "Write goals down so we see them every day. So we burn them in our brain." So I have set some goals and will be working on achieving them what about you?

Other Articles Examining Who I Am:
Mad Celtic Warrior, Poet and Priest! - An Essay - 2003
The Journey of a Quester! - An Essay / Spiritual Biography 2004
New Year's 2006
Who Am I? Who Am I? -2008
Confessions of a Bibliophile #5 - How I Became a Bibliophile, From Dyslexic to Addict - 2009
New Year's Goals 2010
Steven R. McEvoy Interview - 2012
2014 My Goals
Who I Am - 2014

Feast of Saint Joseph 2018
I have greatly sinned 

Steven R. McEvoy Q & A IT Employee Spotlight

...

Steven R. McEvoy - Interview

I was asked by some readers to do 20 questions like the author and publisher profiles interviews I have been doing the last few years. I approached a few authors about coming up with some questions for me. Cynthina Leitich Smith agreed and here is what she came up with. You can also see her version here.


1. Are you a bookstore or library reader or both?

Both, but to be honest about 80% of what I read is ARC's or review copies. But I love browsing both bookstores and libraries.

2. Do you keep a record of your reading? If so, how?

Yes. I am on my 34th volume of reading journals since August of 94 when I started keeping track of reading and have an itemized list dating to October 1995. I also keep a list of favorite books each year and favorite authors each year. Now I only count books I read for myself, I do not list books I read to my children or other children.

3. How do books for children and teens fit into the mix?

I tend to go through phases in my reading; currently I would say about 75% of what I read is YA or children's literature. I have had a great fondness for children's lit since doing a university course in it about 10 years ago. Because of my dyslexia and not learning to read until later in life, I never read children's books while a child and now have a deep appreciation and love for them.

4. How do you spread the word about great reads?

If it makes my top ten of the year I tend to buy a bunch of copies and give it away for Christmas and birthdays. I now try to post a review of every book I read on my blog, Book Reviews and More. Once posted on my blog I cross-post to amazon.com, amazon.co.uk, amazon.ca and chapters.indigo.ca. After that I Tweet about it, post to Google+ and Facebook.

5. How do you store your books? Do you keep all of them? Donate?

With reading over 100 books a year I now keep very few and if I buy an electronic copy usually do not keep the physical book any more at all. Most of my ARC's and review copies end up with Family and Children's Services. My dad and stepmom are foster parents and I pass along a lot that my stepmom reads with them. I also donate them to the FACS Library or Foster Parent Association garage sale. I tend to only keep about one out of every hundred books I read, and usually only if I plan on rereading the book again and again.

6. Was there a book that changed your life?

The fiction book that had the biggest impact on my life was probably Jacob the Baker by Noah benShea. I have read the first book 13 times and the trilogy 10 times. They are books I reread every year and each time they challenge me to be a better person. The books in the series are: Jacob the Baker, Jacob's Journey and Jacob's Ladder.

7. What advice do you have for the teachers and parents in their lives?

Lead by example. Be a reader. Also do not give up on anyone. I had teacher after teacher just pass me on in English. Anyone can become a reader if they are really taught to read, and appreciate the wonder of literature.

8. What advice do you have for young readers with dyslexia?

Be persistent, get the help you need. There are worlds in books, and friends awaiting you. If one technique does not work for you keep trying until you find the one that does.

9. What challenges did you face?

I came out of grade 7 reading at a grade 3 level. And yet I passed the school year and was soon to be in High School. My parents sent me to a private summer school and in 2 months I went from reading about 30 words per minute to over 400 with comprehension and from reading well below my grade level to reading at a university level. Once I learned how to read and discovered the joy in reading, it was like finding worlds I never knew existed and I became very addicted to reading.

10. What do you do when you're not reading?

Write reviews, workout, hang out with my wife and kids, plan my next books to read. I usually have different books on the go on my Kobo, iPad, iPhone and physical books. Currently I have about 30 books in process.

11. What does reading mean to you know?

To be honest, books are life! Books show us other ways of being, they can help us learn to be better at being. To help us become what we were meant to be. I love this quote from Saint Erasmus "When I get a little money I buy books; and if any is left over I buy food and clothes!" That is the passion I have for books.

12. What is their special appeal?

Books can take us to places we have never been. They can take us to places we never dreamed of. They are friends we can visit with again and again. They can be an escape or distraction or they can focus us to a greater purpose. If I were to have a single biggest addiction in life I would say it is reading.

13. What were you like as a young reader?

To be honest I could not read and did everything I could to avoid it. In school I rented the movies and did my reports based on the movies until after grade 7. I felt stupid because others in school could read and I could not. I hated having to go out to special instruction for English class time.

14. Why did you decide to become a champion of literature?

Books have the power to change our lives. Good books will challenge us to be, great books will challenge how we look at and see the world. When I think a book is great I do everything I can to promote it.

15. Why is this important to you?

To be honest I have read some bad books and even a few that were awful. When I encounter something that I believe is special, wonderful or amazing, I do all I can to promote it. Back when I was a book seller I hand sold books by Paolo Coelho, Chuck Palahniuk, Christopher Moore, Robin Sharma and Dan Millman every day. At the time they were among my favorite authors and I could sell almost anyone on trying one of their books. I think as readers we have a responsibility to the authors and the characters in the stories that touch us to share them with others. If, as I see it, books and characters can be friends in our lives, who doesn't like their friends to meet each other?

16. Who were some of your favorite authors or books in your youth?

I tend to read authors not books. I find an author I like and read everything they wrote. When I was younger it was Harry Harrison, Piers Anthony (all the non- Xanth books), Robert A. Heinlien, Steven Brust. Back then I read mostly science fiction.

17. Who are some of your favorite authors or books now?

For the last few years I have been mostly on a Young Adult Kick. I find the writing so much better, the stories tighter and the characters amazing. My current favorite authors would be: Cecil Castellucci, Noah benShea, Cynthina Leitich Smith, Libba Bray, Alexander Gordon Smith, Kathryn Lasky, Arthur Slade, Kenneth Oppel, Holly Black, Pat Schmatz and more.

18. If you were stuck on a desert island and could only have 10 books to read again and again, what books would you want with you?

Bible - either New Jerusalem or Today's New International Version Jacob the Baker - Noah benShea Ishmael - Daniel Quinn Way of the Peaceful Warrior - Dan Millman God is Not Reasonable - Irma Zaleski God Rides a Yamaha - Kathy Shaidle Bench Press - Sven Lindqvist The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari - Robin Sharma Geektastic - Holly Black & Cecil Castellucci Something by Arthur Slade Something by Kenneth Oppel Somthing by Cecil Castellucci
Vlad Taltos Series - Steven Brust
19. I once heard Madeleine L'Engle state that her characters were real to her and almost an extended part of her family. She said once that at the dinner table she sat up and stated: "Meg just finished her PhD." Are any of the characters you read real to you in that way?

Yes. I often wonder what they are up to. Sometimes I think of them years later and end up going back to reread the books and revisit them.

20. What advice would you give to young aspiring authors and artists?

Read, write, hope and try. Keep at it.

Other Articles Examining Who I Am:
Mad Celtic Warrior, Poet and Priest! - An Essay - 2003
The Journey of a Quester! - An Essay / Spiritual Biography 2004
New Year's 2006
Who Am I? Who Am I? -2008
Confessions of a Bibliophile #5 - How I Became a Bibliophile, From Dyslexic to Addict - 2009
New Year's Goals 2010
Steven R. McEvoy Interview - 2012
2014 My Goals
Who I Am - 2014

New Year's Day 2010

It is the beginning of a new year, a new decade and for me, a new phase in my life. In the last 2 years I have graduated college and finished my university degree. Convocation will be this spring, and it is the first time in my life I will not be a student. I have been in university either part or full time since 1988. I, in part, have always defined myself as a student. For the first time in my life I am at a point where I do not have specific academic goals or plans. It is a little unsettling at times. I will also be turning 40 this year and that is supposed to be a mile-marker of sorts in life, the whole 'over the hill' thing and all.

It has been said the only thing we can count on in life is change. Three of my favourite quotes on the subject are:

"Mere change is not growth. Growth is the synthesis of change and continuity, and where there is no continuity there is no growth."
C.S. Lewis - Essay on Hamlet

"There is nothing so constant as change. Meet it. Embrace it. Enjoy it. Learn from it.
The one thing you can be absolutely sure of in your life is change. It's the only thing that never changes. The law of nature is that you either grow or you die; there's no in-between. So, what have you chosen so far? Are you growing in every area of your life? Hey, it's not enough to be growing and looking great just because you work out. That's only a small part of your life. What about your emotions, spiritual life, family, friends, career, hobbies? Are they growing as your body does? Become a complete person and not an in-shape and great-looking version of an incomplete person. There's way more to life than just working out. Go with the flow and embrace changes in all areas of your life. The change will do you good."
Robert Wolff, PH.D. - Bodybuilding 101

"It's Very Important to understand the difference between dreams and goals. Dreams are things we wish for--things you enjoy thinking about but don't really know when they'll happen. Goals, on the other hand, are specific things you have decided you need to accomplish within a clearly defined period of time."
Bill Phillips - Body For Life

My life has changed drastically from where I thought it would be 10 years ago. At that time I expected to be ordained and a minister or still involved in parachurch ministry. Yet over my time doing a religious studies and theology degree I became convinced of the validity of the Catholic Church and returned home there. Then, after my work injury and nearly 3 years off work, I moved from the dream of being a professor to working fulltime in IT. I have also gotten back in shape and lost weight twice in that time, first, through Body for Life and then P90X. So I continue to try to have focus and direction in my life. I try to set goals for the body, mind and spirit. I try to set specific goals in each area but use these guiding rules to help me achieve them:

Daily Goals:

1. To get enough sleep.
2. To eat right & exercise daily.
3. To refuse to be a perfectionist.
4. To carefully control finances.
5. To ask for help when needed.
6. To pray and read the Bible daily.
7. To not pressure self into planning my entire life today.

One of the tools I use is journaling. I am currently on my 37th volume since August of 1994. Each term, I journal on these questions.

Guiding Questions:

Who are you?
What do you want?
Where are you going?
Who do you serve?
Who do you trust?

I am now a student of life, with the goal of learning to be. To become better at being. To be a better man, husband and father. Over this past year I have also learned to purge. I went through all my stuff and got rid of what is no longer needed. I only kept course notes from a few courses, not 10 full years of university notes, assignments and research. I even purged my old journals. I only have the current one.

I am looking forward to the changes in the year ahead. We will be moving, though at this point we still do not know where. The kids are growing and changing daily. 2010 looks to be an interesting year. So happy New Year.

Peace and Strength!
Yours, learning to be
Steven R. McEvoy

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- Leo Rosten

Related Posts:

New Year's Resolutions 2007
New Year's Resolutions 2008
Michale L. Davenport on The Importance of Goals
New Year's Day 2010
Handbook 2010

Other Articles Examining Who I Am:
Mad Celtic Warrior, Poet and Priest! - An Essay - 2003
The Journey of a Quester! - An Essay / Spiritual Biography 2004
New Year's 2006
Who Am I? Who Am I? -2008
Confessions of a Bibliophile #5 - How I Became a Bibliophile, From Dyslexic to Addict - 2009
New Year's Goals 2010
Steven R. McEvoy Interview - 2012
2014 My Goals
Who I Am - 2014

Feast of Saint Joseph 2018
I have greatly sinned 

Steven R. McEvoy Q & A IT Employee Spotlight

...

Confessions of a Bibliophile #5 - How I Became a Bibliophile, From Dyslexic to Addict

Confessions of a Bibliophile #5
How I Became a Bibliophile,
From Dyslexic to Addict

I have been asked by some of my readers to explain how I went from being a dyslexic to a reading addict. I was originally tested for learning disabilities in grade one in 1976. That initial testing was inconclusive. So I repeated grade one, then in grade two my teacher insisted on and pushed for me to be retested. In January of 1978 during my second testing I was diagnosed with a dual form of dyslexia. Dyslexia is a genre of diseases and it is like saying you have the flu. With my dual form I could spell words out loud correctly and put them on paper incorrectly, then spell them out loud a second time looking letter for letter at the paper and not recognize the error. So I left my normal class each week for a few hours for assistance, and was passed each year into the next grade. Towards the end of grade seven my parents sent me for private testing. I was reading at only a grade three level.

My parents enrolled me in a private summer school program eight hours a day 5 days a week, for the whole summer break. It was an intensive program with low student-to-teacher ratios. Each day we did three reading tests. We read out loud for a set amount of time, then we lost words from our word count for any wrong words when we read the passage, and for any wrong comprehension questions on the passages. Prior to this I had not read any books from cover to cover. I made it through school by being a good listener in class, renting the movies, or asking other people in the class. During this course I went from reading at a grade three level to reading at a university level, and from reading about 30 words per minute to reading over 600 words per minute. Now to put that into perspective, here are North American Reading Averages:

Grade 3-4 Student 60-80wpm
Senior-elementary student 120-180wpm
High-school student 200wpm
Average Adult 200wpm
University student 325wpm
Graduate student 400wpm
Average Speed Reader 500-1500wpm.

The average adult rate is the same for everyone, even for university graduates. Once people are not reading as much or as intensely as they used to, their reading rate atrophies. Yet all of this only took care of my ability to read. Because I had spent so many years behind others I was still behind in my writing, and still had the problem with letters reversing while writing. Using a computer helped it to some extent but when I am really tired it even shows up when using a keyboard. However, at the end of the course, I started reading, realized there was a whole world in books I had been missing, and immediately I was hooked.

At first I read mostly science fiction and fantasy - the likes of Robert A. Heinlien, Piers Anthony, Steven Brust, Roger Zelazny, Edgar Rice Burrows and more. Then by about grade ten I was reading classics, Greek dramas, Thomas Hardy, complete works of Shakespeare and just about anything I could lay my hands on. I became an addict in the true sense of the word. I would find an author I liked and read everything he or she wrote.

I went on to be retested for my learning disability, to establish baselines for academic accommodations, in 1982 and again in 1989.

To be honest, if you had told me five years ago I would be a published author, and now a columnist, I would have laughed at you. With the learning disability I never even dreamed of being a writer. Now I have published over 200 book reviews in 7 different publications, written news and features articles, written two three-part serial features - the first on WSIB and the second on Bone Marrow - and all by chance. A few years back I was working at Chapters and I started getting books before they came out, from contacts at publishing houses. I would write reviews that they could pull quotes from for sales and marketing. After about four months of this I thought, "Why not try to submit these to Imprint?" Most newspapers have book reviews, and I had not seen any in the paper in a long time, usually just CD or movie reviews. So I wrote the then Editor-in-Chief and that first summer had two book reviews in almost every issue.

I love to read. It is probably my favorite pastime, or tied with playing on computers (but that is a different column for fall term). I always carry a knapsack with at least two books, a journal and pencil case. In the early years of my marriage I was defined as 'the reader'. The question at gatherings was always: 'Who's that in the corner reading?' and the answer was: 'Oh, that's Andrea's husband.' I almost feel naked without a book and a journal in which to make notes. Even in the last few years, with having children, my reading has only gone up each year. I read everything - fitness, self-help, theology, fiction, science fiction. I truly am a book addict. That is the story of how I became one, and I never knew what I would find between the pages.

(First published in Imprint 2009-06-26.)

Other Articles Examining Who I Am:
Mad Celtic Warrior, Poet and Priest! - An Essay - 2003
The Journey of a Quester! - An Essay / Spiritual Biography 2004
New Year's 2006
Who Am I? Who Am I? -2008
Confessions of a Bibliophile #5 - How I Became a Bibliophile, From Dyslexic to Addict - 2009
New Year's Goals 2010
Steven R. McEvoy Interview - 2012
2014 My Goals
Who I Am - 2014

Feast of Saint Joseph 2018
I have greatly sinned 

Steven R. McEvoy Q & A IT Employee Spotlight

How I Read So Much?

Advice on Dyslexia An Article

...

Who Am I? - Who I Am!

A Post from Eric Scheske over at The Daily Eudemon got me thinking again about the whole question of 'who I am'. I constantly struggle with the question of Who I am? One thing I do, to help me find out is journal. Usually at the beginning of each term - so about 3 times a year. I journal based on questions from a Science Fiction show called Crusade which was a spin off of Babylon 5. Each episode of Crusade began with a series of questions being asked by the narrator to the Captain. They were:

Why are you?
What do you want?
Who do you trust?
Who do you serve?
Where are you going?
I find that as I get older, I really like lists. I have quite a few of them that I use in various forms and means. The daily goals I have been using as guidelines for living are:

1. To get enough sleep.
2. To eat right & exercise daily.
3. To refuse to be a perfectionist.
4. To carefully control finances.
5. To ask for help when needed.
6. To pray and read the Bible daily.
7. To not pressure self into planning entire life today.

And then there are principles to live by, which I got from a book by Dr. James MacDonald, which are as follows:
Eight Principles to Live Your Life by:

1. I will do all things as unto the lord.
2. I will live in the light of the judgment seat of Christ.
3. I will consider my weaker brother in all I do.
4. I will do nothing unless I'm sure that it's right to do.
5. I will do all things to the glory of my God.
6. I will avoid what may appear wrong even if I know it's not.
7. I will abstain from things that could enslave me.
8. I will seek always to do what I believe Jesus would do.With these three sets of guiding questions or goals, I have been fairly happy with my progress so far. But I still can not answer the question of who I am. My goals are to be a good man, a good husband and a good father. I think the activities listed above - the journaling, staying healthy in body, mind and spirit - will help those goals. I want to be a better friend to the people in my life.

The Closes I have come is a poem I published a few year back found here called "poetry in being". Yet If I had to answer I would say:
I am a Roman Catholic
I am a husband
I am a father
I am a son
I am a brother
I am a friend
I am a bibliophile
I am a writer

Some of my favorite quotes about identity and being are:

"Then you're trapped in your lovely nest, and the things you used to own, now they own you."
Chuck Palahniuk - Fight Club

“Anything that doesn’t lead us to that – to better know and serve God – is a waste of time.”
-Charles de Foucauld

"There is no certainty, only opportunity"
-V for Vendetta

"It is in changing that things find purpose."
Heraclitus

"Trouble is a part of life, and if you don't share it, you don't give the person who loves you a chance to love you enough."
Anonymous

"It's Very Important to understand the difference between dreams and goals. Dreams are things we wish for--things you enjoy thinking about but don't really know when they'll happen. Goals, on the other hand, are specific things you have decided you need to accomplish within a clearly defined period of time."
Bill Phillips

"It is when things go wrong, when the good things do not happen, when our prayers seem to have been lost, that God is most present. We do not need the sheltering wings when things go smoothly. We are closest to God in the darkness, stumbling along blindly."
Madeleine L'Engle

"Mere change is not growth. Growth is the synthesis of change and continuity, and where there is no continuity there is no growth."
C.S. Lewis

"There is nothing so constant as change. Meet it. Embrace it. Enjoy it. Learn from it.
The one thing you can be absolutely sure of in your life is change. It’s the only thing that never changes. The law of nature is that you either grow or you die; there’s no in-between. So, what have you chosen so far? Are you growing in every area of your life? Hey, it’s not enough to be growing and looking great just because you work out. That’s only a small part of your life. What about your emotions, spiritual life, family, friends, career, hobbies? Are they growing as your body does? Become a complete person and not an in-shape and great-looking version of an incomplete person. There’s way more to life than just working out. Go with the flow and embrace changes in all areas of your life. The change will do you good."
Robert Wolff, PH.D. Bodybuilding 101

"To strengthen the mind you must harden the muscles."
Montaigne

"Now -- here is my secret:
I tell it to you with an openness of heart I doubt I shall ever achieve again, so I pray that you are in a quiet room as you hear these words. My secret is that I need God - that I am sick and can no longer make it alone. I need God to help me give, because I no longer seem capable of giving; to help me to be kind, as I no longer seem capable of kindness; to help me love, as I seem beyond able to love."
Douglas Coupland - Life After God

"May I never be complete. May I never be content. May I never be perfect. Deliver me, Tyler, from being perfect and complete."
Chuck Palahniuk, Fight Club, (As the world sees these things.)

"You're not your job. You're not how much money you have in the bank. You're not the car you drive. You're not the contents of your wallet."
Fight Club - The Movie

"Either Get busy living or get busy dieing!"
Andy - The Shawshank Redemption

"What am I living for? What am I dieing for?"
Unknown

"All men die, not all men really live!"
William Wallace - Braveheart

"There is no normal life, just life so get busy living it!"
Unknown

Some of this post comes from New Years Resolutions 2006. I also wrote to essays on this topic in university the first The Journey of a Quester! - An Essay / Spiritual Biography and the second Mad Celtic Warrior, Poet and Priest! - An Essay. Yet even after all of that the question remains, of "Who am I?"

(As an addendum Jeff Vehige has a great post on Rule of Life - Some Examples, that is really worth checking out.)

Other Articles Examining Who I Am:
Mad Celtic Warrior, Poet and Priest! - An Essay - 2003
The Journey of a Quester! - An Essay / Spiritual Biography 2004
New Year's 2006
Who Am I? Who Am I? -2008
Confessions of a Bibliophile #5 - How I Became a Bibliophile, From Dyslexic to Addict - 2009
New Year's Goals 2010
Steven R. McEvoy Interview - 2012
2014 My Goals
Who I Am - 2014

Feast of Saint Joseph 2018
I have greatly sinned 

Steven R. McEvoy Q & A IT Employee Spotlight

How I Read So Much? 

Advice on Dyslexia An Article

...

The Journey of a Quester! - An Essay / Spiritual Biography

The Journey of a Quester!

One always begins a journey with the first steps. It may often lead you some place you never expected. My journey is such a journey. I was born and raised in Kingston, Ontario. My father was Irish Catholic and my mother was not. How I ever came to become a Christian is a mystery to myself and to many others. Yet this paper will attempt to examine some of the contributing factors.My father was very active in the Catholic Church until I was in about grade six. He was a third order Knight, in the Knights of Columbus. I remember wanting to be a squire, a junior knight when I got to be old enough. But then my parents started fighting every week about why we went to church. Eventually we stopped going to church because of my parents fighting over it. It was only years later when I discovered my mother's leanings in this area that I understood why. I was an altar boy at this point. In fact I had become a senior altar boy, which meant I lead the other altar servers in helping to officiate at mass. Whenever I hit hard times in life I always return to the Catholic Church, for mass, to say the rosary; both of these always provide comfort and encouragement.
Coming from such a mixed home it is not surprising that I was always attracted to religions and religious experiences, and that I struggled to establish my own beliefs and practices. So in order to examine the quest I have been on so far, I will look at groupings that have had an influence upon the shaping of the man I am today. These groupings are:

1. Events that profoundly affected me.
2. Books or authors who have helped to mould me.
3. People who have poured into my life.
4. Organizations that have helped to shape me.

By examining a few examples from each of these four categories, I hope to understand how I have come to be the man that I am and why certain people, places, or events have had such profound effects upon my development to date.

First, I will do an examination of some events. The earliest, profound spiritual event I can recall is the first time that I was a senior altar server. The priest lifts the Eucharist for blessing, and then the chalice, and then he lifts both, and these three times are supposed to be special times for prayer. The first time that I was a senior altar server, during the lifting of these three, I remember praying, "God what do you want me to do with my life?". I had a vision and heard a voice say to me "Be my priest!", and even at that age I knew how sinful I was and I said, "Not me". Each time the communion elements were lifted, I asked the same thing and the third time, I saw mass being said, yet I was the one at the altar lifting the elements, presiding over mass, not kneeling there ringing the bells. This event has always remained with me. As an adult I now try to serve God and others. My grandmother always called me the spiritual one, and she always wanted me to be a priest. But I never shared this event with anyone until I was a student in campus ministries at Queen's many years later. This event always comes to mind when I must make hard decisions in life. It has helped me to try to steer a narrow path. I have left jobs rather than lie, or compromise my principles. This event comes back to mind, when I have major decisions to make, or paths to choose in this world.

The second event I want to examine is my confirmation. It was a strange time; I had started to doubt the Catholic Church and even the Christian tradition. I was studying martial arts and Shaolin Buddhism, I was in grade eight, and we were never told how, if you choose to not be confirmed now, you could go about it later. So I remember going through the classes and doubting it. Even on the day of the confirmation, I remember thinking, as the Bishop anointed me, "Why am I doing this?", yet going ahead and being confirmed. This event left me doubting for many years - doubting God, Christianity, and even myself. It was like a test and I felt I had failed, and had not had enough faith. My salvation and spiritual life were in doubt for many years after. During any major decision in life I think back upon this event, and try to recall the mistakes I made then by not asking questions and seeking options. Now I try to do both of those things - seek options and continually ask questions about the processes I am in, the paths that are open to me, or the decisions I must make. I ask these questions of myself, my close friends, those who are mentoring me or whom I consider spiritual parents or advisors, and of the Christian community that I am part of at the specific time. I try to use these different sources as a form of discernment in all major decisions - my wife, the men in my bible study, Peter Frick … all the others who pour into my life.

The next event is one of the strangest. Some would call it chance and some people would call it divine providence. I was in the checkout line at A&P in Kingston; I grabbed a Horoscope from the rack and threw it on the belt. The guy behind me, Jeff Forrest, asked, "You don't really believe that do you?" I said, "I don't know, but if nothing else, it is worth a laugh." Then he said, "I believe something and I know it is true - Jesus Christ." Well Jeff and I ended up meeting weekly for a few months, then I came to believe he was a bible-thumping freak. I stopped returning his calls and even changed my phone number so he could not keep calling me. Yet our meetings, and having looked at Matthew in the New Testament together, would have a lasting effect on me. A few years later while I myself was a student at Queens and was involved with Campus Crusade for Christ, I went to an Easter service with Eric Rose, my mentor at the time. There I ran into Jeff Forrest; he was amazed to see me at church. He asked what I was doing there. I said I had become a Christian. He then took me around and introduced me to some of his friends and family, who had all been praying for me since we had first met and discussed the Bible. This event caused me to realize the importance of community; a small community that you care about and help and who care about and support you - prayer being the greatest support you can give to someone else.

The final event I would like to look at is a strange meeting at a party at Queen's. At that point I was not practicing any Christian religion; I was doing tarot readings in the pubs on campus to make some extra money. I went to a party and while there I met a 'witch' who claimed to have clairvoyance. She started a reading on me, and while looking 'into my soul', she freaked out, said that I wasn't suppose to be here yet, that I was born a generation early and because I was here now I had to choose; either I would be the black knight and serve the evil one, or I could be a white knight and serve light. This incident really scared me; I knew I was capable of very evil thoughts, and it was always harder to choose to do good over evil. Like Paul in the New Testament, it was easier to do what I did not want to do and always harder to do what I wanted to do. From this meeting with 'Alexis' I knew I would have to be deliberate about my life and spiritual growth, (for it would be so easy to become what I would not like or enjoy) and that I must learn discipline in the mental and spiritual life. As I had previously disciplined my body in martial arts, I now would have to seek a holistic approach to life and my personal development; I would have to develop body, mind and spirit and try to seek balance between them.Each of these events was a challenge or a test, a time of trial and choice. Through each of them I was forced to grow and choose and learn how to be, and to learn how to be good at being. Each was a tool used in shaping me, as were a series of authors of specific books. We will now examine a few of those.

The first is a group of books - books that I have worked through many times. Some of these were Dr. Neil T. Anderson's books, especially The Bondage Breaker, Harvest House 1990, and Victory over the Darkness, Regal Books, 1990, as well as Mark I. Bubeck's The Adversary, Moody Press, 1975 and Overcoming the Adversary, Moody Press, 1984. These books were worked through again and again, alone, with friends, and with pastors or counsellors. They helped me to break from the past; they helped me to see the possibilities for the future. They helped me to establish my identity in Christ Jesus. They were tools in my healing of both spirit and mind, of emotions and soul.

Next I want to look at the works of John Eldredge, specifically Wild at Heart, and Waking the Dead, both have been extremely useful in helping me to connect to my heart, to learn to listen to it and to learn to live from it. They have been the most recent tools used in my development. I have read them myself, worked through them one-on-one with a friend and pastor, and I have lead a small group that has worked through them. The main thrust is that God has a plan for each person and that plan is revealed by one's desires, and to truly live at one's potential one needs to listen to one's heart and follow it.

Another author who echoes the same sentiment in his books is Paulo Coelho, especially in The Alchemist. It is the story of a boy who has a dream and who becomes persuaded to pursue it. In doing so he has many adventures, and does come to fulfil them. Many times in the book it states, "If you pursue your dream the universe will conspire with you to make it happen." I believe that the universe in this statement could be interpreted as The Holy Spirit. I do believe that if you try to live your dreams you will receive help to make them happen. From both Eldredge and Coelho I am trying to learn to listen to my heart, and to learn to live from it.

C.S. Lewis is also a mentor to me, through his writings of theology or fiction. Every time I read one of his works, or reread them, I am challenged to grow. What first really caught my attention was his statement in his space trilogy that humans were 'bent' . This concept of fallen humans having a bent nature resonated with me. It challenged me to learn how to live in a way that was not bent. His belief that this world is not all there is, that it is like 'looking through a glass darkly' echoes my own feelings of life and spirituality. Thus reading his works is a constant reminder of a spiritual truth I believe and a challenge to live in that belief.
From these authors we will now look at specific people who have poured into my life and their influences in helping me to develop and grow, as a person. First I would like to look at my first mentor, Eric Rose. Eric was on staff with Campus Crusade for Christ, and was a worker at Queens my first few years there. I really struggled those years, wanting to change and grow but not knowing how. Every time I cancelled bible study or personal time with Eric, he would stand outside my apartment and pray for me. Even though changes, lasting changes, did not take place in my life and actions for years, Eric was one of the first to really work at helping me become the type of person I want to be. He modelled it by his words, and his action.

Next I want to look at Rob Bartman(not his real name). Rob was a fellow student at Queens, and Ron and I did bible study together over many years. Rob and I both struggled with sexual addictions. Rob fell sexually and confessed it to his church. He was punished by the church and removed from leadership for a year. I stood by Rob through this, and later when I had some problems and struggles, Rob stood by me. He once stated, "What I admire most about you Steven is that you don't give up; you may stumble and fall but you always get up and press on." Rob was always in my corner because I was there for him. Having that support and encouragement even in tough times, helped me to make the changes I really wanted to make in my life. It also taught me to be there for other people, to stand by them through thick and thin, to stick to them, sometimes even when they try to push me away.

Peter Frick is the next man we will discuss who has helped in my spiritual journey. Peter is currently one of my mentors. He receives his spiritual direction from the Jesuits in Guelph at Loyola house, and in turn he provides spiritual direction to me. He is like a sounding board for my emotions, spiritual struggles, intellectual endeavours and my relationships. Peter plays the role of teacher, counsellor, guide and friend. We have met regularly for three years now, sometimes weekly, sometimes every few months as needed. When I call, he always makes time to be there and listen and encourage.

The final person I will discuss is Pastor Bob Bauman. Bob and I met when I was a manager at Starbuck's; Bob was a regular customer. I suggested that we work through John Eldredge's, Wild at Heart together. We did so and are now working on a second book together. Bob is like a brother; he is there for me, but because we travel in different circles, we can share stuff with each other that would be hard to share with those that we know in a different way. Bob and I each play the role of guide and confidant to each other. We both truly seek the best for the other. We are there for when one stumbles or struggles, to encourage, challenge and lend a hand up. Currently, next to my wife, Bob and Peter are the two most important people in my life. I know I could call them at any hour of the day and I believe they know the same about me.
Finally let me move from individuals to organizations. There are a number of organizations that have contributed to my spiritual development. They have each played crucial roles at different periods of my life. Each of these four is a Christian Para-church organization. They are Campus Crusade for Christ (CCC), Promise Keepers (PK), Cursillo and The Navigators Campus Ministry (Navs).

CCC, was instrumental in my becoming serious about being a Christian, about being a man, and a man of faith. It was through Eric and many others that I saw, for the first time outside of the Catholic Church, true examples of what it means to be a man of faith, to try to live that faith daily, to let faith permeate every aspect of your life. There were many examples, from Eric, to different speakers at conferences, fellow students and student leaders at Queens and other schools with whom we interacted.

After many struggles with who I was versus who I wanted to be, I went to a Promise Keepers conference in Detroit Michigan, at the Silver Dome. It was amazing to see 75,000 men in one place, wanting to be men after God's own hearts. At my first conference, after lunch, one of the Musicians started, impromptu, the 'Our Father'. To hear the deep rumbling of so many men praying that prayer as a song together, was life-changing. I went on to be in men's bible studies for the next three years working through different books and studies put out by this organization. That was when real growth and change started to happen in my own life - growth that was visible to those around me with changes in habits and behaviours. Finally my actions started living up to my theology. Choosing to seek out this group and to stay committed to it, was a pivotal point in my development.

The next organization I would like to look at is the Navigators. When I was a student at Queen's I lived in the Navs' house on campus with six other Christian men. Later, as a part-time mature student at the University of Waterloo, I worked for The Navigators Campus Ministry for three years. I was responsible for student and staff development across the country. This included running retreats, conferences, short term and long term missions' projects, and overseeing the day-to-day support of the Campus staff across the country. This was my first major ministry job. I was now doing what my heart desired, working to serve others and pour into them as I had been poured into by so many others. It was a challenge, in that working in ministry, your life comes under a microscope. You must live above reproach. So many people have fallen while in ministry or leadership positions, and hurt the Church's name or Christ's name. I did not want to be one of them. So I needed to apply what was learned through individuals and groups discussed earlier, on an even more vigilant level. This has continued to help me to realize that every aspect of my life must fall in line with the word of God, and must be for the good of God, others and myself if it is to be fruitful and worth the effort.

The final organization I would like to look at is Cursillo. Cursillo is a renewal movement that started in Spain, in the Catholic Church. It came to North America, via some pilots that were training with the U.S. military. Since coming to North America it has spread, and there are now Anglican, Presbyterian, Lutheran, and other chapters. Cursillo is a four-day retreat weekend, with guided talks and discussion. Its focus is on the fact that as Christians, we are all called to live a spiritual life and to be involved in practicing the spiritual disciplines, that we need to meet with small groups for accountability and large groups for fellowship. It also has a strong focus on the fact that we are to serve - serve God, our Christian community and the world. Throughout my Cursillo retreat weekend in 1997, I filled a whole two-hundred-page journal. I came to see my life as a whole and not compartments - the work Steven, the church Steven, the jock Steven - but just Steven a Christian, called to live and love, to laugh and cry, to serve and allow myself to be served. If I had chosen not to go on this retreat I could not be here in school now studying for the ministry. I would probably be dead in a gutter somewhere. Cursillo was also pivotal point in my seeking wholeness in my life, instead of living different fractured and contradictory lives in different circles.

It is difficult looking back at where I have come from; there is a lot of pain and hurt there. Yet I have always been surrounded by good people, caring Christians who have supported me, challenged me and called me to be more than I believe I could be alone. God deserves the credit for that, and the people who were open to being used by Him.


Appendix #1
TimeLine of Steven R. McEvoy

• 1970-Present Member Roman Catholic Church
• 1970 February Baptised in the Roman Catholic Church
• ? Learned to do Tarot Readings by grandmother
• 1980 1st time as Sr. Altar Server
• 1985 Made Senior Rugby team in Grade 9
• 1984 June Confirmed in the Roman Catholic Church
• 1986 February Rugby Tour of UK
• 1987 Jeff Forrest
• 1989 Spiritual Gifts Course in Catholic Church
• 1989 Met Alexis - Witch @ Queens Party Tarot Cards
• 1989-1993 Student @ Queens University Waterloo
• 1989-1998 Involved with Campus Crusade for Christ @ Queens University, Carleton University, University of Guelph
• 1990-1993 Attended Pentecostal Assembly's of Canada Church Kingston
• 1990-1993 Involved with Navigators Campus Ministry @ Queens University
• 1990-1993 Involved with St. Mary's Catholic Youth Group
• 1990-1995 Counselling for abuse, Kingston, Cambridge, Ottawa, Guelph
• 1991 Steubenville Franciscan University Charismatic Catholic Conference
• 1993 Member Baptist Convention of Ontario and Quebec in Ottawa
• 1993 Promise Keepers in Detroit MI
• 1994 Member Fellowship Baptist Church in Kingston
• 1994-1998 Member Presbyterian Church of Canada, Guelph, On
• 1994 Promise Keepers in Detroit MI
• 1996 Cursillo, Toronto Presbyterian
• 1998 Week of Divine Healing, Youth with a Mission Course at Jacobs Well Ministries St. Petersburg, ON
• 1998-Present Student @ University of Waterloo
• 1998-2000 Member Congregation at Renison College University of Waterloo
• 1999 Staff at Waterloo MB Church
• 2000-2003 Work for Navigators
• 2000-2002 Member St. Michael's Catholic Parish Waterloo
• 2003 Member Lincoln Avenue Church Waterloo,
• 2003 Return to Catholic Church
• 2005 Started attending meditations from Opus Dei

(First written for RS 270 The Psychology of Religion Fall 2004. - Sections of this essay were removed for personal reasons and some names and places were changed.)


Other Articles Examining Who I Am:
Mad Celtic Warrior, Poet and Priest! - An Essay - 2003
The Journey of a Quester! - An Essay / Spiritual Biography 2004
New Year's 2006
Who Am I? Who Am I? -2008
Confessions of a Bibliophile #5 - How I Became a Bibliophile, From Dyslexic to Addict - 2009
New Year's Goals 2010
Steven R. McEvoy Interview - 2012
2014 My Goals
Who I Am - 2014

Feast of Saint Joseph 2018
I have greatly sinned 

Steven R. McEvoy Q & A IT Employee Spotlight

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