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By Lisa Ormond |FāVS News Reporter
MOSCOW, Idaho — Colin Meyer, 58, will be ordained a permanent deacon in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Boise in just five weeks. By his side on the altar and in the pews will be the people who matter most in his life to witness and celebrate the culmination of his powerful personal and spiritual journey of transformation and renewal.
He tried to explain how he felt about the upcoming sacramental ceremony in the presence of God after four years of preparation and grace showered upon him, but he was rather speechless, which was “unusual” for him, as he attested.
“I think the best way I can describe how I feel right now is being wonderfully terrified,” he said. “It’s not really fear in the sense of being afraid but being in right worship. A wise deacon once told me that God is not calling you to walk on water; he is calling you to walk in the mud with those who are deeply in need of your service.”
Three other candidates will join Meyer on the church altar in receiving the Sacraments of the Holy Order from Bishop Peter F. Christensen.
“I am deeply grateful to have walked this faith journey alongside three godly men, filled with the Holy Spirit,” Meyer said. “I trust that God will continue to knit our hearts together for a lifetime of brotherhood in him.”
As ordained ministers, these four men will serve their Lord, their local parish communities and become part of the Diocese’s permanent diaconate, which numbers approximately 100 men strong across the State of Idaho.
And according to the most recent U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) report, A Portrait of the Permanent Diaconate in 2024 (released June 2025), there are over 20,000 permanent deacons across the United States serving their church communities.
A new life given
Meyer, a licensed massage therapist by trade, said he embraced his formation path for the past four years with all of his heart, soul and being.
His way to this religious vocation began with his family and the call to follow Christ.
“God took something that was seriously broken and crafted a new pot,” he said in reference to his rebirth. At the age of 49, Meyer was baptized and confirmed on Easter Vigil in 2017 at St. Mary’s Church, his current home parish.
“The day that I was baptized, I felt like I received more than just an indelible mark. I felt my whole soul, my heart change,” he said. “The person that I was before, the dark, angry, self-absorbed, self-serving person that I had been was gone, washed away by the waters.”
Meyer didn’t shy away from the mercy and spiritual healing offered. He embraced the change wholeheartedly, seeking forgiveness and the new beginning with humility, especially with those he loved most — his family.
He attended Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA) classes with his two daughters and credits his eldest daughter, Ashley, for bringing him.
“You see, she had a hard adolescent life mostly, I’m sure, due to my nonexistence as a good father,” he recalled. “I felt the Holy Spirit worked through her to get to me.”
Mercy offered
The remainder of Meyer’s faith story is short of a miracle and a real-life testament of the power of the Holy Spirit. He said the moment the baptismal water hit his head everything was different.
“It completely changed me. Thanks be to God!” he said.
And from that pivotal moment forward, Meyer never looked back, only upward to heaven with love, gratitude, and a desire to be His devout servant.
“My favorite saint is St. Paul (known before his conversion as Saul), because his journey mirrors my own in many ways,” he said.
“Like him, I experienced a kind of blindness before truly seeing and submitting to God’s will. His life is a beautiful reminder of how God can transform us, no matter where we start.”
Kirstin Meyer, his wife of 35 years and a cradle Catholic, said she faithfully walked with him through it all.
“Colin got saved by God — He saved his marriage and family,” she said. “There were addictions, abuse, belittling, controlling and lots of anger to work through.”
Colin Meyer described his wife as his “life force and true guiding light” throughout their marriage and now she stands beside him in his communal pastoral service as a deacon, too.
“I thank God for my wife. He has blessed me with such a patient, kind and loving partner,” he said. “She is truly a reflection of Christ’s love in our ministry.”
She responded: “There’s still a lot of healing that needs to happen but now we have a pleasant marriage.”
Road to redemption and restoration
When Colin Meyer decided to pursue God, embrace his faith and let the Holy Spirit enter his heart fully, visible, continuous shifts followed in him and within his family’s hearts as well.
His youngest daughter Cassidy Rydeen, 23, shared what she witnessed and lived.
“I really feel Jesus came into our life and fixed our family,” she said.
Before her dad’s baptism, Rydeen said there were times she feared her dad and couldn’t talk to him, so she would just go to her mom.
“But all that changed when we started going to church; a bond started to form between us,” Rydeen said.
Colin’s son Brandon Meyer, 25, shared what he witnessed and experienced.
“Throughout my childhood, I was confused by my father,” he said, adding that their relationship now was “definitely stronger” since his dad was “willing to listen,” and now he’s there for him as a father, unlike before.
“I’m proud and inspired by him,” said Brandon Meyer.
Eleanor Meyer, Brandon’s wife, has known Colin Meyer for 10 years.
“Colin is a great example that people can change,” she said. “He’s a really, really great father-in-law.”
Devin Rydeen is Colin Meyer’s son-in-law and the newest member of the family, having married Colin’s daughter, Cassidy Rydeen, in February.
“It is good to see what a life with Jesus could be and what a family is like with God at the center,” he said.
Devin Rydeen was baptized and confirmed Catholic just weeks ago at the Easter Vigil Mass at St. Mary’s in Moscow.
“Colin has been a good role model for me,” he added.
The call to serve
The next fork in the faith-traveled road for Colin Meyer and his family was the diaconate program. He shared how divine intervention made this choice clear for him.
“I think there wasn’t so much that an ‘event’ led me there; it was more like a thunk on my stubborn head,” he said. “It came about through continued service in the Church. I was doing laundry, ironing and then one day I was praying while ironing, and I asked the Lord, ‘What more could I do for you?’ and that was that.”
Colin Meyer said right away he went to his wife to “float the idea” by her. This was in 2018.
“I told her I think I’m being called to be a deacon, and I didn’t even know what a deacon was or did,” he said. “So, what was her reaction? She laughed!”
Kirstin Meyer explained more about her response.
“God and Colin weren’t something I ever pictured. I wondered to myself whether he was trying to do ‘something more’ to look good to others,” she said.
Quickly, his true intentions became clear to her and the rest of their family through his committed actions.
Stepping forward in faith
Colin Meyer said becoming a deacon was a further holy movement of obedience and surrendering to God’s will.
“Before committing to the program, there was a quiet restlessness in me, a sense that something was missing, a gift or a calling I didn’t yet understand,” he shared. “Through this formation, God has patiently brought light to that uncertainty that I’m his beloved child, and my faith has become the steady foundation that guides every part of my life.”
Colin Meyer recognized two specific areas of growth in his personal and spiritual development. This first was prayer, and the second was Eucharistic Adoration.
“For me, prayer has become the constant thread that keeps my heart open to him. My prayer life has grown in depth and meaning, helping me navigate challenges, discover purpose and deepen my love for others,” he said.
“The most important Catholic ritual for me is Eucharistic Adoration before the Blessed Sacrament. It’s a sacred pause for me to simply be with Jesus, to sit in his presence and let his love speak to my heart. It deepens my relationship with him beyond the Mass, offering peace, healing and clarity in the midst of my life’s challenges.”
What deacons do
Colin Meyer’s observation is that most parishioners don’t truly know or see how deacons serve the church.
“Our contributions go way beyond the altar,” he said. “Through our faithful service, God’s love is made real, faith is nurtured, and his kingdom grows among us.”
Through his interactions with his community, he makes efforts to educate.
“They don’t get to see our ministry efforts on the ground — that we go out to the homebound, assist families in crisis, help guide marriage preparation, support [the Order of Christian Initiation of Adults] and more,” he shared. “God’s love becomes visible and tangible through our pastoral service.”
He explained the role of the deacon is to dedicate themselves to selfless service.
“I have learned to see my work not just as a job, but as a vocation, as a way to offer the gifts God has entrusted to me for the good of his people,” he said.
He explained more about how he views his “gifts” and how they will shape his role going forward.
“I feel God has called me to be a ‘People’s Deacon,’ someone who can be relied upon to respond whenever there is a need, someone whose ministry is defined by presence, care and compassion.”
Arms open wide
Colin Meyer shared he is ready and “joyfully awaits” what is next in his discipleship path with Christ as his soon ordained minister officially.
“I want people to know that their parish community cares for them,” he said. “For me, each day is a chance to walk more fully in his plan and to reflect his love in everything I do.”
He seeks to be a “visible reminder” of what Jesus embodied in the Moscow area Catholic community where he’ll serve in the years to come by offering hope and renewal to all those he encounters.
“By pointing to Christ, the Church helps people discover meaning, purpose and joy amid the noise of contemporary culture. The ever-increasing use of social media and general life’s busyness, also challenge spiritual life,” he said. “Pastoral outreach today must meet people where they are, offering opportunities for prayer, reflection and community that fits into the rhythm of daily life.”
“I wake up every day, and I just thank God for allowing me to serve,” he said.
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A beautiful story of God’s redemption. We are never truly lost.