Jeff Lockert
I grew up Catholic, but when I left home to attend the University of Saskatchewan, I began asking deeper questions. Without my parents around to bring me to church, I started wondering: Why am I actually doing this? Was faith just another part of my upbringing, or was there something more?
At university, I became involved in sports nights hosted by Catholic Christian Outreach (CCO). Through those events, I met students who had something different about them — a joy, purpose, and authenticity that I found incredibly attractive. As I got to know them, I realized they had a personal and dynamic relationship with Jesus.
At the same time, I was searching. I even went on a retreat in Winnipeg hoping to find answers about faith, but I came home feeling disappointed and empty.
Shortly afterward, I found myself sitting in a cafeteria with André Regnier, the co-founder of CCO. I shared my frustration and the questions I had been carrying. André listened carefully and then said something simple that changed my life.
He drew a diagram on a piece of paper and asked me, “Where is God in your life right now? Outside of it? Just a part of it? Or at the center?”
That question hit me deeply. I realized Jesus was only one part of my life — alongside school, sports, and future plans — but not truly at the center. Then André asked a second question: “Where would you want Him to be?”
I answered honestly that if it was possible to have a real relationship with Jesus at the center of my life, that’s what I wanted.
That day, in a university cafeteria, I invited Jesus to be at the center of my life. I prayed a simple and sincere prayer, and afterward I experienced a profound peace.
In the months that followed, everything changed. Prayer became personal. Scripture came alive. Mass became meaningful in a completely new way. Most importantly, I began asking a different question with my life: “God, what is Your will for me?”
That question changed everything. Jesus changed the direction of my life and transformed my perspective. I was becoming a follower of Jesus with a mission to share Him with others.