Know - Grow - Go

The Courage to be Uncomfortable

If we look, we all have a person or a situation in our lives that's prodding us, pricking our conscience a bit, asking us to step out of what’s comfortable, to buck the voice of the crowd, to take a risk. That’s often the Holy Spirit in disguise, nudging us towards a fuller, more abundant life - even if it’s a little painful to get there.
Notice those situations that make you uncomfortable; pay attention to those persons you’re tempted to avoid. In those moments, rather than immediately turning away, getting lost in your distractions, or saying 'Let someone else worry about it,' pray for courage and step in. Pray for guidance and take a risk. Pray to be able to say 'Yes' to your "Lazarus", whatever or whoever that might be.

Whom do you serve?

Let the steward in the parable in today’s Gospel remind us to always be ready to change our minds and reprioritize our lives, and allow others to do the same. As Christians, that means making sure God is first - and when we get that right, everything else will fall in their rightful places.

Who Needs Mercy?

What is 'mercy'? The Latin root of the word means, literally, “misery of the heart." This speaks of a person who feels for those who are in misery, afflicted, or sorrowful, and acts to help remedy those individuals. In Jesus, we have the ultimate example of this through his suffering, death, and resurrection. Who needs mercy? We all do! We all have sinned and need to admit our faults (repent). Remember: God loves us beyond our comprehension, and he will not condemn us when we humble ourselves before him. He does not desire to destroy you, but lift you up and heal you with his mercy.

What is True Freedom?

In order to live freely, we often have to say ‘no’ to some things in order to say ‘yes’ to others. This week, consciously choose to put Jesus before all else. Look around your home and consider what possessions possess you; then, pick three and give them away. When we put things in their rightful order - with God first and foremost - we become free to enjoy the affections and attractions of this world without becoming enslaved to them.

Humility as a measure of love

Christian love isn’t easy. Jesus takes humility and makes it the measure of how mature or real our love really is. Do we truly have a servant’s heart, like Jesus, or is our love self-seeking? Will we lay down our life, or will we protect our ego? It’s easy to love those who are attractive and agreeable. What about those who are insignificant, troublesome, or even offensive?
Take some time to sit with these 12 questions, like an examination of conscience, and see where your love still needs to grow or mature:
1. Have I loved my enemies, turned the other cheek in order to embrace those who hate me? Have I kept silent when I could have cut with my words?
2. Have I prayed for those who oppose or disagree with me?
3. Have I forgiven those who’ve hurt me, and asked God to forgive them, too?
4. Have I taken the high road when I’ve been slighted or ignored? Have I let go of grudges?
5. Have I risked humiliation and rejection in order to love another? Have I resisted the fear of being misunderstood, of not looking good, of not appearing strong or in control?
6. Have I stretched my heart in order to see those who are different or strange to me as fellow children of God?
7. Have I preferred the company of the attractive and the influential to that of the poor, the troublesome, and the broken?
8. Am I truly willing to lay down my life for friends and loved ones? How about for my enemies?
9. Have I been willing to “sweat blood” in order to be faithful to my commitments?
10. Am I willing to let my own heart be broken rather than violate someone else?
11. Have I resisted the urge to judge others or to impute motives?
12. Have I been willing to forgive myself, trusting enough in God’s love and mercy to pick myself up and begin again?

Known by Your Sweater

As Catholics, we know that we cannot “earn” our way to heaven, since salvation is a free gift, nor is salvation absolutely guaranteed, for we have free will and can always reject this free gift from God. Instead, we are to have faith. What we do with our lives may help or harm our faith journey. We are all sinners. We struggle with shame, addictions, or any number of sins or disorders. But one thing is certain, and it is this: God knows you and wants you to be with him for eternity.

Get off your steamroller!

How do we live lives of passion for our Lord while bringing others to him as well? We need to recognize that our attitudes and the tools we use to share the Good News matter - and some are better than others. To be effective in sharing the love of God and his Gospel, we need to get off our steamrollers and jump on our backhoes.

Trust in God

Satan, the accuser and father of lies, wants us to believe that God doesn’t really love us; that God can’t really be trusted and doesn’t want the best for us. That He’s just waiting for us to mess up, so He can punish us. Those are all lies, and we have to reject them and live in the truth that God does love us. He is trustworthy. He does want good for us. And coming to know Him and these truths is the path of healing, freedom, and a life of abundance.