Surrounded by God's Beauty

It seems like I run across non-believers often in today's society.  More and more people my age (39) and younger are atheists and do not believe in a Creator.  I'm not going to get into any of the "proof" in this particular post, but I do wonder how someone can look around and not believe?  In the last several days I've taken a few snapshots with my iPhone showing some of the natural beauty in the world, and they show, to me, in a very simple way, the beauty of God's creation.  Yes, atheists could easily explain these things from a scientific standpoint, and that's okay.  But, what makes it possible in the first place?  Deep down, can someone really believe that all of "this" comes from nothing?  Of course not.  At the beginning, there was a trigger -- something that started everything.  It is scientifically impossible for something to come from nothing, but it is possible, if you believe in a Creator, to believe that something came from "nothing."  After all, even if you believe in the Big Bang Theory, something caused the Big Bang, right?  

On the flip side, some people will show pictures and talk about all of the pain and suffering in the world.  You'll hear non-believers say, "if there is a God, why does He allow all of this?"  Let's not forget that God did not create the world with pain and suffering in mind.  Pain and suffering exists as a result of sin, or separation from God.  The Fall in Genesis 3 is where  it all began.  There are four consequences of Original Sin:  1) A distorted idea of God 2) Fear 3) Unsound judgment 4) Death.  Thank God for sending Jesus to die on the cross and give us the chance for redemption.  If all the people in the world followed Jesus' teachings, wouldn't this world be a better place?  Hard to argue it wouldn't, even if you're an atheist.

Anyway, here's a few images of God's beauty that make me thankful.  Even with all of the pain and suffering in this world, there are reminders every day that God exists.  Give Him thanks and praise.  Amen.  

All Saints Day. . .Lives to Emulate!

I listen to this Podcast called Catholic Answers and one of the hosts, Patrick Coffin, always says, "Be a saint, what else is there?"  While, yes, it is a bit of a tag-line, we should all strive to be saints!  Today in the Catholic Church is All Saints Day.  It is a feast day, always celebrated on November 1st, where we Catholics honor the lives of all saints -- known and unknown.  The feast of All Saints traces back to Pope Gregory III in the early part of the 8th century.

Saints have been an important part of the Catholic Church since the beginning.  Many people outside of the Catholic Church accuse us of "worshipping" the saints and essentially committing idolatry.  This couldn't be further from the truth.  We honor the saints and pray to them for their intercession.  In the Catholic Church, we believe that the saints are in heaven and closest to God, so why not ask someone close to God to pray for a specific cause?  Have you ever asked someone to pray for you?  I see people on Facebook every day saying, "please pray for 'such and such' who is sick."  Have you ever asked your family or friends to pray for you?  Here is some more good information if you want to explore why Catholics honor and pray to the saints:

http://www.catholic.com/tracts/the-intercession-of-the-saints

Outside of the debate that often occurs between Protestants and Catholics around the saints, it is hard to disagree that these people were some of the holiest to ever walk the Earth.  Many did not lead easy lives.  Quite often they were persecuted for their beliefs, many were jailed and tortured, and others were martyred.  But, in the end, we have people that were examples of what it is like to devote your life to others -- a selfless living.  The saints didn't live their lives worried about the material things in this world, but instead they were more worried about helping the poor, feeding the hungry, taking care of the sick, and spreading the loving message of Jesus Christ throughout the world.  The saints didn't wait until tomorrow to do what they could do today.  They knew that tomorrow might never come.  They knew that at any time we could be pulled from this existence and judged based on how we lived our lives up to that very moment.  They lived every day to honor Jesus Christ by doing good and living a life of prayer.  Whether you are Catholic or not, these were good people and we should all try to "Be a Saint."

If you are interested in being inspired, go read about a couple of them.  Just Google Catholic Saints.  Or, some of my favorites are St. Patrick, St. Francis of Assisi, St. Padre Pio, St. Therese of Lisieux,  St. Vincent de Paul, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton

Mark 10, 17-31: The Rich Man

I think I've mentioned that I've been making my way through the New Testament.  I started with Matthew, and now I'm on Mark.  My goal isn't to read it quickly just to say I did, but rather to really focus on quality, spiritual reading so that I may learn and understand certain messages.

Last night, I ran across the story of The Rich Man.  This is the story where a rich man approached Jesus and asked the question, "Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?"  Jesus replied a few sentences later to the man to "sell what you have, and give to [the] poor and you will have treasure in heaven."  This made the man sad as he had many possession and Jesus told his disciples, "It is easier for a camel to pass through [the] eye of [a] needle than for one who is rich to enter the kingdom of God."  What a powerful message this is to hear.

This doesn't mean that a rich man can't enter heaven, but it does suggest that many of us get too attached to worldly possessions and the idea of such possessions, and even Jesus said in Matthew 6:24 that "no one can serve two masters. . . You cannot serve God and mammon."  These two sections of Sacred Scripture in Mark and Matthew invite us all to think about what is most important in life, and why we are here on Earth.  It is not, and should not be, to collect material things.  We are put here to glorify God, and we do that by loving our neighbor and by helping those in need.  If we are worried about being rich and having the nice new car or the new house or the latest, trendy clothes, how can we focus on what matters most?

I am guilty of these things myself.  I have tried to succeed in the corporate world just to be "successful", I've wanted to give "more" to my family and not make them "want" anything while occasionally treating myself to nice "stuff", and yet I haven't looked around enough to make sure I'm doing those things that make God happy.  I'm working to change this, but praying over these passages in the Bible helps me understand I have a long ways to go.

God, help all of us understand how to serve you more faithfully and not become a slave to mammon!  Amen.  

Surprised by Truth -- A book worth reading for all Christians and non-Christians

As I renew my faith and devotion to the Catholic Church, I'm trying to immerse myself in its teachings.  One way of doing this is obviously by reading the Bible as much as possible which I believe I've done every day for the last couple of weeks (I started at the New Testament Gospels and have now made it all the way through Matthew and am on Mark).  Another way of enhancing my understanding is by reading other spiritual books/papers.  I just finished a great book titled Surprised by Truth by Patrick Madrid, a renowned Catholic Apologist.

This book was just outstanding.  It contains several stories of  people who either were Protestant and converted to Catholicism, Catholics who left the Church and came back, and even a story of someone practicing Judaism that converted to Catholicism.  In all cases, these people did a tremendous amount of personal research into the Church's teachings and deep discernment to come to the same conclusion -- to experience Catholicism is to experience the fullness of the Church's teachings.  These readings helped me to understand more deeply some of the Catholic Church's teachings including papal infallibility, Communion of Saints, purgatory, the value of Sacred Tradition, and the importance of Mary.  These are often subjects misunderstood by others outside, and even inside, of the Catholic Faith for all of the wrong reasons.  Once understood, it is tough to deny that Catholicism is the truest and fullest form of Christianity.  It's not that other forms of Christianity are bad -- they are just incomplete.

If you are Catholic, I recommend this book to help better understand why we believe what we believe.  If you aren't Catholic, I recommend this book to help you understand what Catholics believe and why we believe, and, just perhaps, you'll start asking yourself some of the same questions that others in this book asked of themselves at one time.

God Bless you all.  

Confession. . . the feeling afterwards

I will save a post for a later date that discusses the theological basis for going to Confession, but for now whoever reads this will have to trust me that it exists (because it does).  But, this isn't about the theology, this about the feeling afterwards. 

I woke up this morning aroud 7 a.m.  My wife and two kids were already awake.  We meandered around the house, I went to McDonald's to get Abby pancakes and me a couple of biscuits and a coffee, and then we all started cleaning up around Colten's first nap.  I looked at the clock and realized that Confession started at 9:30 on Saturdays, it was already 9:45, and I wanted to go.  I huried and got cleaned up and threw on my clothes, and I told my wife I was going to run to Church and do Confession.  She looked at my a little sideways since I'd just went a few weeks ago (which was the first time in years), and she said, "What do you have to confess?"  I simply told her that everybody sins, and I, for example, used the Lord's name in vain a few times, I got angry at others, I was impatient, and a few other things. 

I went to Church into the Blessed Chapel where the confessionals are located, said a prayer beforehand, re-examined my conscious, and entered the Confessional to sit face-to-face with the priest.  I can honestly say that in the little room, as I sat across from the priest, I felt like I was confessing my sins to not just the priest, but that Jesus Christ himself was listening.  I expressed sorrow and I received my penance.  I left and went back to the Chapel to pray and do my penance and was home before Colten even woke up from his nap. 

I have felt great all day.  I didn't have any mortal sins to confess -- just venial sins.  But, to be forgiven by Jesus Christ through his priest cannot be described.  Yes, we all can ask forgiveness outside of Church, and should do every day, but it's just not the same (which even Bible teaching supports) and going back to Confession has reminded me of that.  I feel like a different person when I'm finished.  I feel like a better person.  If you are Catholic and haven't been to Confession in many years, then I'd encourage you to take the plunge and go back.  Put your heart and soul into it.  Tell the priest everything.  You'll feel better for doing it.  And, if you aren't Catholic, this is one more reason to consider the Faith.  Trust me, it is life-changing. 

God Bless you all. 

Where to begin?

I have decided to start a new blog that helps me track my spiritual journey.  This is a journey not just about my relationship with God, but also about my relationship with my family -- as a father and husband.  I just finished a book my Matthew Kelly titled Rediscovering Catholocism, and it has inspired me to find a way to become the "best version of myself."  I encourage anyone who might see this blog, regardless of whether you are Catholic or not, to read this book.  In so doing, it has helped me to reflect on my life and what's most important -- God and family.  I believe that I can only become the best version of myself if I deepen my faith and improve my relationship with the Church and those around me. 

As a first step, I have made a personal commitment to be more engaged with God and at Church.  It all starts with a commitment to prayer daily -- a habit I'm working to make stronger.  I went to confession for the first time in many years a week or so ago.  I can't describe how good it felt to talk openly to a priest and then to God afterwards asking forgiveness for my sins.  I intend to go more often.  Additionally, I have volunteered more at Church.  I just joined the high school youth group core team to hopefully assist our young adults as they explore their own relationship with God.  I have agreed to serve on our Family Room Fund committee to solicit donations for the expansion of our facilities -- leveraging my experience in communication and sales for the good of the Church and our community.  And, finally, I am trying to be as active as possible in supporting my daughter as she goes through preparation for First Reconciliation and First Communion by teaching her about prayer and faith. 

Outside of working to engage more with God and Church, I wish to grow closer with my wife and children.  I want to be the best husband and father possible, and I know I can be better, more patient, and more loving than I am today.  They need me, and I want to be there for all of them.  I am praying more that I may follow the path that God has put in front of me, that I may listen to his wishes, and have the courage to do what is necessary. 

This is not going to be easy.  I am just a regular person trying to live a good, Catholic life and do what is right by God, but I believe that change has to start somewhere.  We can't look around and expect things to change unless we are willing to change ourselves.  As a society and people, many of us have strayed too far from God, and it is time to return "home."  I hope that as I make my personal journey and share my struggles and successes that it will inspire others to do the same.  

God Bless you all.