Johnny Vrba
I was raised in a Catholic household and witnessed my parents love each other like Christ loves his church. Recently, my mom digitized her old camcorder footage and I’ve realized further what an extraordinary home I was raised in. I chose to study business at Arizona State University. In my pursuit of new friendships after leaving behind my childhood friends, I sought out new relationships by entering fraternity life. Providentially, God used a fraternity sponsored charity climb of Kilimanjaro to introduce me to YoungLife Africa and plant the first seeds of my reconversion.
While the habits I was forming in the fraternity became increasingly mortal, I was simultaneously planning for a study abroad trip called Semester at Sea. Just a few weeks before the voyage set sail, I met a few SPO missionaries who invited me to a men’s retreat. I was once again presented with a radically different way of living, but I needed to sail around the world first…or so I thought.
We embarked on our world tour in January of 2020 from San Diego, heading west to Asia. This was not an ideal time to visit Asia. Over the course of the next 73 days, we were denied from country after country, even entire continents, and ended up turning off our engines and drifting for weeks at a time out in the open ocean. The chaos of our situation was the catalyst for an existential crisis. I cried out to God for the first time in my adult life and experienced a powerful vision that changed my life. I immediately called Jeff (now Brother Jeff) an SPO missionary and asked to live in his household program next year at ASU.
Those next two years transformed my life forever and healed me in places I didn’t know were bleeding. I was so impacted by the richness of living in community that I applied to be an SPO missionary. I served for two years at the University of St. Thomas and received infinitely more than I was able to give. As an artist, I’ve always resonated with the quote that “God draws straight with crooked lines.” It is extraordinary to think how God led me to a brand new place, that I now call home, and new people, who I call my closest friends. My faith in Jesus and the power of community through His Holy, Apostolic, and Catholic Church has also led me to a new career, new artistic endeavors, new wine skins, and a brand new life that I pray is a witness to the glory of Almighty God. Thank you for reading, God bless you!
