It Starts With You: Developing A Personal Relationship with Jesus (Part 2) | Ep. 4
What helps the faith you grew up with become a relationship you choose to live? Ben Puch and Sophie DiCosola join Khalil Hattar to share their paths toward a more personal faith. Ben recalls returning home from college, trying Alpha after seeing his family’s experience and beginning regular visits to adoration. Sophie describes a confession at SEEK that helped her approach the sacrament differently, alongside the uneven work of building a daily prayer life.
Their stories reach into friendships and ordinary plans. Ben talks about keeping a commitment to confession when friends suggest something else. Sophie considers choosing kindness when she does not feel like it and the personal invitations that helped her feel known at Alpha. They discuss both setting aside time for prayer and remembering God during everyday tasks. For someone inviting a friend to Mass, their advice is practical: go together, sit with them and help them understand what is happening.
In this episode
- Ben’s experience of Alpha and regular adoration
- Sophie’s confession at SEEK and growth in daily prayer
- Prioritizing confession when plans with friends conflict
- Prayer time and remembering God in everyday tasks
- Personal invitations and accompanying a friend at Mass
About the guests
Sophie DiCosola
Sophie DiCosola serves in social media and videography at St. John the Evangelist Parish, producing podcasts, videos and photography. She earned a bachelor’s degree in communication from the University of Dayton, with a concentration in media production and a minor in Spanish.
Ben Puch
Ben Puch is introduced in this episode as a parish partner at St. John the Evangelist. In his account, he describes returning home from college and studying construction management locally. He shares how his family’s experience of Alpha encouraged him to try it, and how regular visits to adoration became a turning point in his faith.
