“Living the Faith”

The truth is that each baptized person has a vocation, not just religious and clergy. By our baptism each of us is called to share the mission of Jesus.

The sharing of gifts is meant to be a sign of one’s love, and God gave us the greatest gift of all — Jesus.

Advent affords us the opportunity to exercise the virtue of patience. In the midst of the hustle and bustle of this often-frenetic pre-Christmas time, the Church gives us the opportunity to slow down and to reflect upon the true meaning of the season.

Ignoring our losses can wear us down. If we don’t grieve well we can never really let go and enter fully into the new phase of our lives.

Commitments take work. To be true to a vow or commitment, we have to be willing to say “yes” over and over again. Commitments challenge us to grow and to become better people. They stretch us into becoming what God wants us to be.

Prayer is meant to nourish our relationship with God and not be limited to a time or place. Think of how you nurture other relationships. Share your feelings. Talk to God anytime.

Suffering is a deep mystery of life. Although we may not feel it at the time, what our faith tells us about suffering is that God never abandons us in it. With all suffering, there eventually comes a resurrection.

Lent is a good time to get a yearly spiritual checkup and to do those things we need to do to deepen our relationship with God.

We can learn a lot about our spirituality if we take time to reflect on our image of God. Let us view God as a compassionate being and live our lives responding to God’s love. He will never abandon us.

The only way to bring light to our dark world today is by how we live our belief in the Gospel of Jesus. We must live our lives with hope and faith that God will never abandon his people.

All followers of Christ are called to build God’s kingdom and spread his love. This commission is not simply for the ordained and the consecrated religious, it is our common call. Each of us has the responsibility to discern prayerfully how we can best live this call in our lives.

During this beautiful season, let us reflect on how we will continue to give birth to the God of peace and love throughout the New Year. Try to make a little Christmas every day.