May all glory be to God, as He has called me to serve on the wonderful campus of Northern State University in Aberdeen, South Dakota!

Hey there, my name is Sam Rehal, and I was raised in Omaha, Nebraska. I was graciously raised Catholic and attended Catholic schools up through high school. I grew up attending Mass every Sunday and learned a great deal about the faith through formation at home and the Jesuits at Creighton Prep. Although I knew my faith in Christ was important, there were many areas of my life I didn’t let God into, nor did I want to. Because of this, I knew Christ in my mind but not fully in my heart. I accepted the idea that God loved me, but I didn’t foster the loving relationship with Him that He desired or that I truly needed. I didn’t recognize Him as the loving Father that He truly is.

Arriving at the University of Iowa for undergrad in biomedical engineering, I attended the Newman Catholic Student Center for Mass every Sunday. I got invited, by a FOCUS missionary, to Bible study for the first time in my life. Through this, I was invited to a Catholic conference called SEEK, which changed my life.

Truly, my heart was set ablaze unlike ever before. I had a deep yearning to know the “why?” of my faith, to understand, and to actually develop a relationship with Jesus Christ, with the God who loves me. Through involvement and, later, leadership of a group diving into the understanding and defense of the faith, leading Bible studies, outreach initiatives, retreats, and being discipled by other young, faithful Catholic men, I grew to love and desire to share my faith, too.

At this point, I was blessed with an internship opportunity, where I was graced by God to be an instrument in a close friend’s conversion to Catholicism. This is where I felt the first call to mission. Right now, so many are stuck in a culture that offers empty promises of fulfillment through inauthentic relationships, misplaced purpose, identity, or sensualized love. Jesus Christ saved me from this, offering me a new, never-ending path of infinite hope, joy, and real love.

Now, I’ve been called to share this renewed life on campus with other young men. This isn’t just a passion project or a “phase.” Real people’s souls are at stake. College students come face-to-face with a very consequential four years, and the Lord has called me to be a part of His mission (confirmed by the intercession of St. Thérèse of Lisieux) to bring them Home. As it is written in Matthew 9:37-38, “Then he said to his disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; pray therefore the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”

I am greatly excited to embark on this mission the Lord has called me to, but it would not be possible without the support of people like you! Truly, I am blessed to have the opportunity to trust in God through the financial and spiritual support of mission partners, so that together we can fulfill Jesus’s great commission to “make disciples of all nations.” (Matthew 28:19). Your support allows me to fully enter into the missionary life: investing deeply in authentic friendships with students and helping them encounter the joy of Jesus Christ. This isn’t solely Christ’s mission, nor just mine; I want to invite you so that together we can accomplish this beautiful mission.

“Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving; and pray for us also, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, …that I may make it clear, as I ought to speak.” – Colossians 4:2-4