I recently had the pleasure of attending my third high school DBYC, the Diocese of Biloxi Youth Convention. At this convention, teens hear talks from the selected speaker, watch skits performed by the Spirit Movers, hear teen testimonies, and have the opportunity to encounter God’s miracles in more ways than imaginable. I always consider this to be my favorite weekend of the year, and somehow each year just seems to get even better.

This year’s conference these was Belong, and we were blessed to have Katie McGrady as our weekend speaker. Her talks were centered around being seen, known, included, and loved. One of my favorite parts of conference is when we break into small groups, and as a Spirit Mover, I had the opportunity to lead one with one of my closest friends. The small groups are randomly placed, so it pulls together teens from all walks of life throughout the Diocese. The passion for our Lord was evident in my small group. They all came open to share and were very social from the beginning. It is beautiful to watch the group grow throughout the weekend both in faith and in community. Had it not been for DBYC, I wouldn’t have met some of the sweetest people.

Community building is a major part of the weekend. My faith community was extremely small before my first DBYC. Because of this convention, I’ve met my closest friends. There are not enough words to describe how amazing it is to see hundreds of Catholic teens gathered in one room singing, dancing, and praising our God. When you come to DBYC, all worries from home gets set a side, and you get the chance to breathe. God’s presence is evident in people’s pure joy. Everyone I met had a smile on their face, and the only reason was God. We all bonded through sharing what parts of the talks stood out to us, what song we liked best, or who had the better dance move in the mosh pit. Conversations would start off small and then lead to people opening up and being more vulnerable with each other.

When the priest was processing with the monstrance, it was like my heart had stopped. I looked at God and surrendered my heart.
Abby Robinson

The weekend builds up to Saturday night. This is the night God is present the most. It concludes with adoration. Before adoration, I was extremely anxious and my heart was racing, but I didn’t know why. I quickly realized that God was preparing me for the peace to come. When the priest was processing with the monstrance, it was like my heart had stopped. I looked at God and surrendered my heart. I have never felt more peace than I did at that moment, and when I looked up, I saw all my peers reaching with their arms stretched for Jesus. All I could think is Wow. That is the beauty of our faith, and that is the beauty of DBYC.