About

Lori Balderas

My personal story — be a bright light

I am a devout Catholic who converted to Catholicism at the age of forty-nine. It is truly the best thing that has ever happened to me, and I want to spread the joy and excitement I have to others who are considering joining or returning to the Catholic faith.

My father was raised Catholic and my mother a Methodist, but I didn’t attend any church growing up. It wasn’t until I moved to a very Christian area in the late 1980s with my former husband that I became a Christian. I fell in love with Christ at that moment and became fascinated with learning more about Him.

I became even more reliant on Christ after a life-altering experience at twenty-three. My twenty-one-month-old son and I were in a horrific car accident while I was seven and a half months pregnant. As a result, I not only gave birth to my daughter, but suffered a broken neck as well.

After the accident we needed to move closer to my family for help in my recovery, which meant leaving my solid Christian support system. I never turned away from Christ, but I felt quite a void in my new surroundings and couldn’t find a church I felt happy in. I felt like a lost puppy.

When my third child, a son, was born, I enjoyed being a stay-at-home mom. I learned to cope with my permanent disability and made the best of my limitations.

Years later, when my twenty-five-year marriage ended unexpectedly, I found myself searching for God again. I started asking Him for help and guidance. He answered my prayers and my entire life changed. I didn’t have a midlife crisis — I had a midlife conversion.

I am now married to fellow Catholic Simon Balderas, and together we own a film production company, WonderMouse, Inc., in Ventura, California. I am also employed at my local parish, Our Lady of the Assumption, as the Lead Wedding Coordinator. It brings me great joy to help couples plan and fulfil their sacramental marriage ceremonies.

I look forward to my future with Christ as my protector and guide. He is, after all, the Way, the Truth and the Life.

The idea

Be Focused. Be Faithful. Be Fresh.

Be Focused

Life in this world is full of distractions and quick fixes. There is a lot of excess, sensory overload and selfish motive. You have to learn to block out the noise.

Make Christ the centre of your life. Make time to spend with Him. Close your eyes. Envision His face. Imagine Him speaking to you, holding your hand, walking with you. Feel a calm wash over you.

Go to Mass, and prepare yourself in mind, body and spirit before you go. Take in the sights, the smells, the sounds — really take them in, as if you had never experienced them before. Listen to the Word proclaimed. How is it speaking to you at this moment?

Don't let others distract you or deceive you into turning your attention to unimportant things that will separate you from what is right and good.

Be Faithful

We live in a cynical world. People need to see things immediately in front of their eyes to believe them — and even then, things can be faked or manipulated for someone else's gain.

Faith is something you feel in your heart and soul. You can't put faith on a table or under a microscope. You can't buy it or sell it.

You have to be brave, and willing to surrender yourself to the idea that there is someone guiding your life. He doesn't need to be standing in front of you physically. Have faith.

The beauty of having Christ in your heart is that He doesn't come and go. He is with you always. His will is perfect; He has our whole lives planned out already. We just need to be willing participants. And with faith comes hope — with Him, all things are possible.

Be Fresh

Faith can go stale on us. We say the words without hearing them and call it devotion.

I came into the Church at forty-nine, so all of it was new to me — and I've come to believe that freshness isn't a beginner's privilege. Read a book of Scripture you've been avoiding. Ask the question you're embarrassed to ask. Bring your doubts along; He can handle them.

And when something stirs you, tell somebody. Your excitement is contagious. That's how most of us got here.

The studies

Charles Merritt

Catholic educator

Charles leads the Fresh Catholic study series — the Scripture studies, the doctrinal series, and the seasonal studies that follow the Church's year. He is a regular guest on the podcast.

See the studies