Catholic Faith Space
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“Do not be afraid; just have faith” (Mark 5:36). These words in Tuesday’s gospel that Jesus says to the synagogue official are words that he also says to us. In our daily lives, there are many moments where we might be tempted to fear or worry about certain situations or about what is to come. However, we must take Jesus’ command to heart. Faith changes everything.
It’s easy to tell ourselves we have faith. But is it just an inspirational word that we pull out when we need it or is it a virtue that guides our whole lives? Do we recognize faith as a great gift that allows us to trust Jesus with everything we have? Whenever we are going through something challenging or when we are filled with fear or worry, there is often a lot of noise around us, which can block out the truth. Satan uses fear as a weapon against us and loves when we are filled with doubt and worry because He wants to drive us away from Jesus. But in these moments, remember that Jesus is right there with us. He looks upon each one of us with love and says to us, “Do not be afraid; just have faith.” These words should be a source of great comfort and peace for us. They remind us that faith makes a profound difference in our lives and has the power to outweigh any fear, worry, or doubt. And the thing to remember about having faith is that we have never reached maximum capacity; there is always room for more. We can always ask Jesus to increase our faith. If we allow it to, fear can consume us and take over our lives. But Jesus has something better for us. When we are in the midst of the unknown or something challenging, remember Jesus’ words to us. Just have faith, it will change everything.
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Last week, I spent the week at my sister and brother-in-law’s house in North Carolina and met my now three-week old nephew. As I held him, and watched him, I was filled with so much love and gratitude for this new, precious and small life. As I spent time with him, I saw the work of God. Babies easily remind us of a powerful, good, and loving Father and Creator. I can’t help but think about all of the babies who never get to live outside of the womb. And I wonder, how can anyone look at life as something to discard just weeks or months before in the womb, all in the name of “women’s rights” and “reproductive health.”
Yesterday marked 51 years since the Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade decision. The fateful decision on that January day revealed a country who had again lost its moral compass and a culture that had turned away from God. With the overturning of the decision in June of 2022, our country has seen a lot of states pass laws that ban abortion and favor life. There has been a lot of progress, but there is still so much work to be done. We need to stand up for life until abortion is not only illegal, but more importantly, unthinkable. So many people are complacent and many others have become desensitized to the culture of death that normalizes the absolutely dehumanizing, cruel, and evil practice of abortion. Others believe the lies that the pro-abortion lobby and media push. Some people say that we care too much about this issue or to stop talking about it. But as long as God has given us another day, we must work to uphold and honor the dignity of life, sharing that every single life is a gift from conception to natural death. In order to make abortion unthinkable, it takes all of us. In order to change the culture, we need people who are passionate about life and about helping women in unplanned pregnancies who feel like abortion is their only option. We need to support and promote pregnancy resource centers and work to steer people away from the abortion-giant, Planned Parenthood and share their corrupt and immoral practices. We need to study and brush up on our pro-life apologetics so that we have the knowledge and ability to share why life matters with those who disagree. For any of you who do not feel very passionate about being pro-life or any of you who are scared about sharing your pro-life stance, I’d challenge you to do something this week that helps you to put your beliefs into action. And for those of you who are already passionate about being pro-life and strive to live it out daily in your words and actions, do not lose your fire and conviction. The culture of death has permeated our country and the battle over abortion rages on. But God is on the side of life, and with Him alone, we can change one heart and one mind at a time. “We are facing an enormous and dramatic clash between good and evil, death and life, the “culture of death” and the “culture of life”. We find ourselves not only faced with but necessarily in the midst of this conflict: we are all involved and we all share in it, with the inescapable responsibility of choosing to be unconditionally pro-life.” (St. John Paul II) Nine years ago, as of yesterday, I received the Sacrament of Confirmation. Some pictures from that night popped up in my facebook memories and caused me to think about the sacrament. As I look back and reflect on the years since, I recognize just how significant and important that special evening was and how much of an impact it has had. If you know me, you know that I am not a loud and outgoing person. But with the help and guidance of the Holy Spirit, He has helped me to share my faith, even if just in small, subtle ways. And no matter what our personalities are or what obstacles and weaknesses we have, we are all tasked with sharing our faith with others and taking a stand for who Jesus is and what He has done in our lives.
At some points in our lives, we may have had a lot of fear around sharing our faith. What will people think of us? We might be seen as weird. Will we lose friends? We cannot let this fear and the temptation to conform with the rest of the world stop us from sharing what we believe and why. It can be uncomfortable and may stretch us past what we think we are capable of. But with the help of the Holy Spirit, we will be given the ability and desire to get out of our comfort zones and live our faith. The key to sharing our faith is to rely on the Holy Spirit and ask Him daily to help us and increase in us the different gifts we need at different times. We will definitely fail many times, but this is not a reason to stop or give up. We must call upon the Holy Spirit and ask Him to help us again. We must not let our weaknesses prevent us from living the lives Jesus calls us to and being who we were created to be. At Confirmation, we accepted a mission; to live as a witness to Jesus Christ in the world. He is counting on us. Every day that we wake up is another day we have to share Jesus with the people around us. Sometimes it will be in big ways, but other times, it will be in small, quiet ways. Whether it is in the words we speak, or in our actions and the way we live our lives, we have the opportunity to make Him known. May we ask the Holy Spirit to increase His gifts in us and fill our hearts so that we would live out the mission we have said “yes” to. |
AuthorStriving to share hope, joy, God's love, and all of the good stuff, one blog post at a time. Categories |
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