Brent

The Power of Confession

IAACS: IT’S ALL ABOUT CONFESSION SILLY

My family invited a friend who was the former associate pastor at our parish, Father Tony. He has since moved to the role of pastor at his current parish. We picked his brain about how to make parishes stronger. Without skipping a beat, he proclaimed “adoration and confession.”

I’m going to focus on confession in this article. Father Tony said that parishes need to do more than just offer the Sacrament of Confession for 30 minutes before the Saturday vigil Mass. It needs to be widely available and promoted. Think about it, when was the last time you heard a priest talk at length about the importance and value of Confession?

WHERE GRACE ABOUNDS

You really have to think of a parish as a group of people with various sins on their souls. Now, which parish will be stronger? The parish where a large portion of the congregation receives the Sacrament of Reconciliation regularly or the one with very few penitents? From a purely logical viewpoint, the stronger parish is the one with less communal sin.

Faith and grace flourish where sin is reduced. It’s like cleaning up all the junk and trash to reveal the natural beauty of the soul. If you understand the importance of Confession, then you also recognize the importance of the other sacraments as well. You will want to go to Mass every Sunday and Holy Day and receive the Eucharist in a state of grace. In fact, you will follow all the precepts of the Church. Where Confession abounds, so does grace.

FAMILY PEACE

Here’s a small example of the communal power of Confession. My wife, who is a living saint, insisted that we all go to Confession as a family because we haven’t gone in a few months. We all received the forgiveness and for a brief time, we were a family without sin.

The following Sunday was a peaceful one. I don’t know if it was just a coincidence, but it seemed like there was a greater effort in the household to foster a sense of peace and joy. Personally, I really wanted to live out the last part of The Act of Contrition — “And I firmly resolve with the help of your grace to sin no more and to avoid the near occasion of sin.” It’s like the entire family wanted to keep the sinless streak alive, at least for a day.

I can see the wisdom in Father Tony’s words about building a parish on the foundation of the Sacrament of Confession. After all, if my immediate family felt a sense of peace and joy after Confession, imagine how an entire parish must feel. At any given time, a good proportion of the congregation has a “clean slate” and is trying to keep their sinless streak going. That will have an entirely different dynamic than a parish where only a few “old school” members are going to Confession while the vast majority haven’t gone in years.

While we should support an individual going to Confession whenever they need to, we should push our pastors to place a greater emphasis on that sacrament. They need to encourage more people to receive it. If there isn’t enough time in the current slot, increase it. A parish family that is free from sin will be a stronger parish. I don’t know a single pastor that doesn’t want a stronger, more vibrant parish with more individual souls in a state of grace.

How Expecting Perfection Leads to Unhappiness

Maybe it’s just me, but I’ve noticed a disturbing trend in the world today — the expectation of perfection. It is often seen in expecting perfection from others but is sometimes manifested in expecting perfection from oneself. I believe that that we too often forget that we are not perfect beings.

Constantly Finding Flaws

Complaining seems to be people’s default mode now. When I run into a friend, I greet them and ask how they’re doing, only to be barraged by their list of grievances. Here are some of the examples of what I come across on a daily basis.

In my youth soccer league, coaches complain about the competencies of referees. Keep in mind that most referees are volunteers just wanting to help out.
Also in soccer, parents are upset that there aren’t enough coaches or referees or that they don’t like how a particular coach manages their child’s team.
At a Mass, a new lector made a mistake regarding the readings. Despite people telling him it’s okay, he beats himself up over the error and pledges to never lector again.
At a school event, people complain about the way a particular event is being run or a particular policy. The lines were too long, they didn’t have enough supplies, they didn’t give enough notice, etc.

Striving for perfection and expecting perfection are two different things. I often try my very best in whatever I do. Likewise, I hope that other people are doing the same. But I need to also have an understanding that things won’t always go as intended. The desired outcome isn’t always achieved. We will always find things that disappoint us if that is all we focus on.

Modern Day Pharisees

I think back to the Pharisees in Jesus’ day. In the Gospels, they seem to always be expecting, even demanding, perfect adherence to Jewish laws. Those who did not live up to the 613 laws were cast out of certain circles or at least looked down upon. When you have so many laws, you’re most likely going to be in violation of a few of them at some point. When there’s the expectation perfection, you will always be disappointed because you will always be surrounded by imperfection.

We can act similar to the Pharisees. We cast heavy burdens on people because when we expect them to behave flawlessly according to our standards. They may be doing everything just fine — being kind and thoughtful, working hard, and doing their best. But so many times, we focus on their shortcomings — they’re lateness, unresponsiveness, lack of organization, etc. When the Pharisees saw Jesus, they only saw the Mosiac laws He broke, not the good He did. We too tend to get into modes where the people around us are nothing more than a collection of flaws.

Our Catholic faith is so great because God sees more than our faults. He knows we are imperfect and yet He loves us anyway. God gave us the Sacrament of Reconciliation knowing that we won’t always succeed at living according to His Will perfectly. It should be a comfort to us that God knows us so well that he knows we have our flaws and provides us a means to correct ourselves. Instead of God being disappointed in our imperfections like a Pharisee, He rejoices whenever we strive to follow Him.

Accepting Our Imperfections

We need to imitate God and also understand that no one is perfect. That means:

Not getting overly frustrated when things don’t go perfectly.
Not getting angry with people when they don’t live up to our expectations.
Looking for the good in people and not focusing on their flaws.
Not beating ourselves up when we fail to live up to our expectations.

When I think of our imperfections, I’m drawn to praying the Fifth Joyful Mystery. Mary and Joseph physically lost Jesus. Talk about failing as parents! But they just kept looking for Him for three days before finding Him. I think about how we have those moments when we lose Jesus. We often spiritually lose Jesus when we sin. We can either fall into despair because we aren’t living up to God’s high standards. Or we can imitate Mary and Joseph, turn around, and start searching for Jesus again in our lives.

Speaking of imperfection, sorry that my Rosary decade pages on my website are in bad shape. The slides extension I use for each “bead” isn’t working and is no longer available. I’m trying to find a replacement or redesign those pages to do something different. Stay tuned.

Shocking! Living Immorally Leads to a Decline in Morality

Statistics Don’t Lie

Let’s take a look at the results from a recent Gallop survey about morals in America. Overall, only 15% of those surveyed said American morals values are good to excellent. Now, I would really like to meet those who said that. How low are their expectations to think our society is excelling morally? 49% rated the state of American values as poor and 34% said “fair.” I probably side on the “fair” viewpoint.

Here’s where the survey gets interesting though. They broke it down into people’s view on specific moral and ethical topics. Here’s how those broke down:

54% responded that abortion is morally acceptable
55% said that death penalty is acceptable
53% said euthanasia is acceptable
69% have no problem with fornication (sex outside of marriage)
26% are okay with polygamy
14% think affairs are okay
94% are on board with artificial birth control
38% think pornography is okay
63% approve of embryonic stem cell research
82% are cool with in virtro fertilization
44% think you can change genders

I don’t think it takes a PhD in mathematics to see the connection between society’s views on individual issues and the overall sentiment of the US’ moral state. If such a large number of people have favorable opinions of immoral actions, is it any surprise that we have a dim view of the overall morality of the country? Statistically, there must be overlap in the people supporting these immoral actions who are also in that 83% believing that the overall state of morality is fair or poor.

Moral Truths and Selective Morality

To me, this actual affirms my belief in moral truths. You have so many people favoring immoral attitudes and yet they have an intuitive sense that something is wrong. Try as we might to rationalize certain immoral or unethical behaviors, we can’t escape that intrinsic sense that something is out of balance. This is like someone claiming the benefits of eating junk food all day long and then wondering why they are overweight. Deep down, we know that eating junk food is unhealthy. And we know, deep down, that many activities are immoral. We can’t support immoral actions and expect a high overall moral state of society.

I’m betting that people are selective with their immorality. Someone might claim, “it’s not my belief in gender fluidity that is leading to society’s moral decay. It’s those abortion advocates!” Or “I’m not hurting anyone with sex outside of marriage, it’s those pro death penalty people who are to blame!” We all like to think that we’re not part of the problem because we can always point to someone else who is worse in our minds.

This Isn’t New

The Old Testament is filled with accounts of the Israelites rejecting God and then suffering the consequences. They couldn’t see that breaking the Commandments lead to unhappiness and despair. Or they thought it was someone’s else’s rejection of God’s Truth leading to issues. Unfortunately, this just seems to be part of human nature going all the way back to our first parents, Adam and Eve. We can’t help ourselves from disobeying God and we refuse to learn from the consequences.

How the Rosary Develops Strong Moral Character

Where does the Rosary play into this moral mess? For starters, by praying the Rosary you are investing in learning God’s Will and for the strength to follow it. I think so much of today’s problems is caused by people doing what feels good or what those in power (politicians, media, celebrities, etc.) tell them they should do. But they don’t stop and ask what God demands of them. By praying the Rosary with utmost humility, you are seeking God’s truth.

Humility, the fruit of the First Joyful Mystery, combats the sin of pride. When we humbly pray the Rosary, we tell God that we may not always understand His ways. We may not even agree with His ways. But we know God’s ways are always good and we ask for His help through Mary and her Rosary for the strength to follow what is good. If more people sought divine guidance through prayer, our world would take a stronger moral character.

Why Should We Practice Mortification?

You Can Do This

The movie, Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit, starts with the main character’s military helicopter being shot down. The movie then flashes forward to Jack in rehab. The doctor has some pain medication for him, but she asks him to wait two minutes before taking them. When asked why, she replies with “so that you know you can.“

I liked this little exchange. While Jack Ryan is suffering from his injuries and the rehabilitation, the doctor asks just a little more from him. While not in the movie, I imagine that she’ll ask him to wait 2.5 minutes the next time she administers his pain medication. And then 3, 5, and maybe challenge Ryan to not skip a day entirely. The point is that Jack needs to know that he is strong enough to control his wants and endure a little bit of discomfort. That is how he grows into the determined and steadfast CIA analyst throughout Tom Clancy’s books and movies.

Practicing Mortification

That leads me to thinking about the Church’s demands that we practice mortification. Mortification means subjecting oneself to self-discipline and self-denial of bodily goods. It’s more than simply not committing sin (that’s a given). It’s giving up something good for the sake of the greater good. It means giving up some comfort to honor God and to show penance for our sins.

Some classic ways we practice mortification is by fasting and abstinence, acts of charity and service, and generally doing what is good when we don’t feel like it. But there’s also a dimension of putting up with a little discomfort. The Catholic Gentleman podcast challenged listeners to practice some form of mortification every day. They mentioned small acts like turning off the air conditioner, taking a cold shower, giving up electronics, or skipping your morning cup of coffee.

Your Life’s Power Plan: 8 Essential Pillars

This may strike us as the Church being cruel. What does a cold shower have to do with our relationship with God? Like Jack Ryan, small acts of mortification show us that we are stronger and have more control over our passions than we think. If I can tolerate a cold shower for one minute, maybe I can also resist certain temptations. If I can drive to work on a hot summer day without A/C, I’m in much better shape to resist Satan’s empty promises.

Building up Endurance

We build physical strength through exercise. Every movement in exercise actually tears muscle fibers which grow back stronger and more resilient. In the spiritual sense, mortification breaks us down slightly and allows God’s grace to build us back up. It clears out our desires for what is physical for what is Heavenly. If we are detached from our earthly passions, Satan has very little to tempt us with.

Mortification is so important in our spirituality, it’s the fruit of the Second Sorrowful Mystery of the Rosary — The Scourging at the Pillar. We remind ourselves every Tuesday and Friday that God calls us to a life of purity and mortification. Like Jesus being scourged and his flesh being ripped away from his body, mortification is us ripping away our earthly desires. Keep in mind that those passions and desires aren’t necessarily bad ones. They may be good — food, comfort, quality entertainment, sleep, etc. But we need to occasionally “rip away” those good comforts and replace them with even better ones — God’s grace. We need to remind ourselves that we can do small things for God building us up to accomplish the big, saintly things.

Disclaimer

Now I shouldn’t have to say this but be smart in your mortifications. Don’t do anything dangerous. Don’t wear a parka when it’s 110 degrees. Don’t try to go extended periods of time without eating or drinking. Don’t flog yourself like you see in some movie portrayals of Christians. Mortification is about building spiritual strength over time to show that you can live for God’s Kingdom. God is not impressed by stupid stunts.

How Boredom Leads to a Better Life

I read this post on DesiringGod.org about why God introduced boredom into His divine plan. He explains:

Boredom is the relentless experience of not finding satisfaction in this world. Something starts out being exciting, satisfying, but soon we weary of it and we need something else.

I think that is God’s design in this universal experience of boredom: to point us to the origin of everything interesting, to the world where no one will ever be bored again — God’s presence through Jesus Christ.

If I understand this article correctly, boredom is God’s way of telling us to try some other way to find satisfaction in our lives. The cycle of trying something new, getting bored, and trying something else eventually brings us closer to God. If we never got bored, we would just be content with the status quo and never have a drive to strive for something more like finding a deeper relationship with God.

I’m working hard to make the most of the boring moments of my life. Or rather, I want to be aware enough to know when I’m trying to satisfy my boredom in unfulfilling ways. Like empty calories in a diet, my boredom is telling me that I need to find something more substantial in my life. Here are some ways to make the most of boring situations.

Embrace Doing Nothing

Your body needs rest, including your brain. We all need a little down time where we aren’t actively doing something. It’s not easy when there are so many ways to spend our attention. Like starting a new exercise routine or a diet, you have to start small when it comes to quiet time. Now that the weather is nice, I try to sip my morning cup of coffee outside in the back yard. No screens, no podcasts, no exercising — just me alone with my thoughts. These sessions only last 3-5 minutes before my urge to “be productive” becomes too powerful to resist. But, taking a few minutes to center myself does have a positive impact on my day.

Hold Conversations

One aspect that is lost in our age of streaming video and smartphones is conversation. When you’re feeling bored, try having a conversation with someone whether that be your kids, spouse, siblings, or friends. This has the added benefit that you now have multiple people no longer isolated in front of their screens. It also helps forge a tighter connection between people. I’ve heard repeatedly that you can’t evangelize strangers. By talking with people, you introduce opportunities for evangelization.

Pray

Often, boredom may be God’s way of telling you to get in touch with Him in prayer. I know there are so many times when I’m feeling bored, and I reach for my smartphone when I should really reach for my Rosary or a Bible. I think of how much time I spend in front of devices and how relatively little time I spend with God.

We so often operate in “Martha Mode.” If you recall in John’s Gospel, Martha was hosting Jesus and was busy handling all the details of the event. Her sister, Mary, sat and listened to Jesus. Martha was upset feeling that Mary wasn’t spending her time wisely when there was so much work to be done. We so often act like Martha — how can we rest and relax when there is so much to do? But there will always be things to do. We can’t perpetually push out spending time with Jesus in prayer because there is work to be done. That will lead to us increasing our boredom because we aren’t filling our time with the ultimate source of satisfaction — Jesus Christ.

Don’t Multitask

I’m still working on taking advantage of boredom. I often continue to “doom scroll” before going to bed or watch one more pointless video clip. But one thing I’m really trying to cut back on is multitasking. If you look at the modern family (mine included), you will see us eating dinner with our heads down in books, magazines, and phones. I’m working at being present and focused on whatever the event is. If I’m watching sports, then I’m watching sports. If I’m talking to someone, I’m talking to someone! It’s better to have a single good experience than try to cram in three superficial experiences by multitasking.

When it comes down to it, we all just need to slow down. The world isn’t going to come to an end when we don’t look at a screen for an hour. We don’t have to cram 36 hours of tasks into a 24-hour period. Sometimes, it’s okay to take a little break and allow a little boredom into our lives. God is better able to reach us when we’re still.

Loving God is an Obligation, Not Optional

The Thing about Volunteers

I volunteer for my local AYSO (American Youth Soccer Organization) chapter as the coach administrator. I’m already ramping up for the upcoming fall season. As usual, we have way more kids and teams than we have coach volunteers. That means we have to plead with people to coach a team. Thankfully, we can usually guilt trip enough people into coaching.

All AYSO coaches need to undergo training. They need to obtain a coach’s license, pass background checks, and take all sorts of training to ensure the children’s safety. I often get some pushback from those people we ask to volunteer late in the registration process. Their thinking goes, “you asked me to volunteer and now you’re pestering me about completing training? You should be grateful that I stepped in when no one else would. Now leave me alone to coach my team how I see fit.”

“I’m here aren’t I? What more do you want from a volunteer?”

I understand the frustration. After all, coaching any youth sport is a big commitment. And some people didn’t expect that commitment when they signed up their child to play. They were expecting to show up on Saturdays with their cup of coffee, chat with other parents, and cheer their child. Because they feel coerced into coaching, they think their certification process should be easier than the coaches that really wanted to volunteer.

The Thing about Catholics

I see something similar to the reluctant coach with how we often approach practicing our faith. We can feel like we are doing God a favor by going to Mass, a parish event, or even saying some prayers. Because we give God some of our precious time, He in turn shouldn’t bother us with difficult Church teachings on sin and Hell. We want the pastor to just tell us how Jesus loves us no matter what we do so we can go on acting however we like.

“I’m here, aren’t I? What more do you want God?”

Many people no longer see their faith as an important piece of their lives. Instead, faith is something optional like a gym membership. Your parish is something you can utilize as much or as little as you like. If it’s considered optional, there’s no commitment or challenge. When we encounter a teaching we disagree with, we pack up and take our business elsewhere. We love our parish and our faith when it confirms our ways. But when our faith requires change and even some sacrifice, we complain about how the Church isn’t “inclusive” and is being mean.

Pride and the Rosary’s Solution to it

We commit the sin of pride when we feel that God should change to conform to our worldview instead of us changing our worldview to confirm to His truth. Instead of us honoring God, we want God to honor us whenever we grace Him with our attention. Many times, we want God to give us a heavenly discount because we did something the Church instructs us to do. The age of participation trophies seems to have spread to how we interact with God.

Now, it’s okay to have doubts and questions about our faith. But we need to show the maturity to seek answers when we have doubts instead of dismissing God and His Church when He challenges us to live as the people He designed us to be. When we realize that our faith is an obligation, not optional, we’ll be more inclined to look for those answers.

When it comes to our obligation to practice our faith, we can meditate on the Second Joyful Mystery — The Visitation. The fruit of this mystery is love of neighbor. It’s a good mystery for breaking out of a self-centered worldview by acknowledging that we are connected to others. We are ultimately connected to God, our supreme neighbor if you will. We have an obligation to love and follow Him even when it’s difficult. That’s where Mary and the Rosary come in. When we meditate on the Rosary mysteries, we ask her for the strength to honor God by faithfully following Him.

Faith is a Routine, not a “Quick Fix”

As I move into summer, I often think about how my daily routines change. My kids are out of school, so we don’t have to scramble in the morning getting ready. I don’t have to pick them up in the afternoon. We don’t have after-school activities and homework to deal with. I also don’t have the house to myself to do my work. All these changes got me thinking about routines in general and what it means to have a healthy, spiritual routine.

Healthy Routines

Most people understand the benefits of healthy routines. The results from a routine are often greater than the individual benefit of each part. When you feel physically healthy, you usually can’t pinpoint the exact cause of it. It’s not due to a specific workout, diet, night’s sleep, or vitamin. It’s the combination of those healthy activities that produce an overall desired result.

I think the same thing can be said about feeling spiritually healthy. It’s not a specific devotion that will put you at ease and feel some sort of existential joy. Rarely, does someone come out of a Mass feeling completely transformed. I don’t look back at my evening prayers and think, “wow, that totally changed my life!” It’s the combination of praying the Rosary daily, reading theological books, going through the Bible in a Year, attending Mass, and participating in the parish which gives me a sense of spiritual joy and moral direction.

The Lie of “That One Thing”

Too often, we either look for that “silver bullet” or dismiss a practice because of a single lackluster experience. We are always on the lookout for that one thing that we think will make us happy. Our consumer culture banks on that desire that this one specific product will make you happy. Politicians do it too. They promise that if you support them, you will get the life you desire. But as many successful people will tell you, happiness isn’t found in one easy step. It usually takes hard work and patience to obtain worthwhile goals.

On the flip side, we often give up good habits because they are hard, or we have a single bad experience. Many people stop going to Mass when they hear a homily that doesn’t confirm their vices or non-Catholic beliefs. Instead of working to understand Catholic teaching and try hard to live up to it, it’s easier to quit and blame the priest for saying something “mean.” Or they give up praying the Rosary or reading the Bible after a few attempts because they didn’t immediately feel any different.

What Makes a Successful Routine?

Those who are successful stick with good habits even when they are challenging or don’t seem beneficial at a particular moment. There is plenty of evidence that exercise, sleep, and diet lead to better overall physical health. But you can’t give up on them just because you don’t feel completely changed after a single workout or good night’s sleep. The same goes for our spiritual health. It takes time for those healthy practices to transform you. But we have plenty of evidence from the saints and maybe people in our own lives that these habits do work when you stick with them.

In my life, I can’t point to a specific Bible verse, book paragraph, Rosary decade, or homily to explain why I keep trying to live the Catholic faith. That’s like trying to find the specific vegetable I ate or the particular pushup that made me feel good one day. It’s the combination of those Bible verses, homilies, books, novenas, and Rosary prayers that create that spiritually healthy lifestyle.

My challenge to you is to ask yourself, “Am I living a spiritually healthy life?” Are you investing in your faith every day? Are you praying every day? Are you learning Catholic teachings (from source material, not what some “catholic” commentator proclaims)? If we truly believe that our faith leads to eternal happiness, then are we working towards that goal every day?

The Importance of Humility While in Church

Lenin’s Tomb vs. Catholic Masses

I visited Moscow in 2002. I saw all the typical tourist sites in Red Square and the Kremlin. One popular destination is Lenin’s tomb where you can actually see the crazy revolutionary preserved in a glass coffin. Unlike certain saints whose bodies are uncorrupted, Lenin is preserved artificially and so there probably isn’t much of his real body left. I’m going to talk about my experience visiting Lenin’s tomb and compare that to my typical Sunday Mass.

You have to follow strict guidelines when visiting Lenin’s tomb. You can’t bring any food, drinks, or backpacks. Photography and videos aren’t allowed. There are armed military guards enforcing silence. They will stare you down in a threatening way at the slightest whisper. I’m not sure what would happen if you didn’t follow protocol. The whole environment is set up so that one doesn’t want to find out.

Let us now walk through a first Communion Mass I recently attended. Before the Mass started, people were chatting in the pews. I saw plenty of ripped jeans, T-shirts, and low-cropped tops. People casually walked in with cups of coffee as if they were looking for a table at the local Starbucks. During the Mass, small conversations started up whenever there was enough musical cover to mask the sound. Responses from the congregation were weak and muffled as only a tiny fraction of people knew the proper responses of the Mass. Even grandmothers, who are usually the bastions of holiness, were just as bad as the kids they were supposed to be examples for.

Meeting God’s Expectations

It’s sad that people give the tomb of a revolutionary who caused the death and suffering of millions so much reverence while disrespecting the Real Presence of our Lord Jesus Christ. This isn’t a matter of ignorance either. I didn’t visit Lenin’s tomb to honor him. I was a tourist, and his tomb is one of the sites people visit in Moscow. But I still had to follow the rules and guidelines. Similarly, anyone entering a Catholic church, whether practicing or not, should understand that it’s a sacred space and act appropriately.

The casualness we approach Mass is a symptom of the deadliest of sins — pride. It’s us telling God that we are going to do what we feel like, not what he expects. We put ourselves, our fashion, our routines, and our wants before his. We tell him that we won’t humble ourselves to dress and act appropriately in his presence. We are like Satan proclaiming, “I will not serve,” whenever we don’t honor and praise God when we are in his presence.

Bringing Humility to your Parish

I’m probably preaching to the choir about how to dress and act when in the presence of God. Mary has already helped instill a spirit of humility if you regularly pray the Rosary. I’m going to offer this challenge to you. If your parish is too casual in its practices, tell the pastor. Ask him to introduce more reverence into the Mass. I mentioned this to our pastor and now we have a moment of silence before our Masses. We are still far from the reverence and humility that God deserves, but it’s a start.

If you’re concerned about the casualness of your parish, pray and meditate on the Fifth Luminous Mystery — The Institution of the Eucharist. We need to remind ourselves just how precious and sacred a church is. When we see the light of the presence on the altar, we need to remember that Jesus is right there. It’s an awesome opportunity to present all our sorrows, concerns, and thanksgivings to him. We occupy a relatively small sliver of human existence that gets to come before Jesus every time we enter a Catholic church. Pray that you don’t squander that opportunity by talking about sports or the wonderful vacation you have planned.

Don’t Worry, God Knows When You Are Ready

Being the one in Charge

I’m transitioning from coaching soccer to refereeing. In a soccer match, there is the field referee and two assistant referees on the sidelines. Most of the time, I’m an assistant referee watching for offsides and who touched the ball last when it goes out of play. It’s a good way to learn how to officiate because most of the difficult calls are made by the field referee who usually has more experience.

One of these days, I’m going to move into the field referee position which is a terrifying proposition. As an assistant referee, I can rest assured that if I make a mistake, the field referee will just override my call. And while I understand the different types of fouls and laws of the game in the academic sense, it’s hard to recall them while making split-second decisions. It will also be difficult to be that final arbitrator and face the backlash of angry coaches, players, and parents.

The Apostles Are Promoted

I think the apostles must have felt the same after Jesus’ Ascension. They were probably comfortable assisting Jesus in his ministry. It was still Jesus’ teaching, healing, and putting himself out there to people’s delight and other’s disdain. Like an assistant referee, they could rest easy knowing that Jesus was going to make the all the hard decisions. Even when Jesus sent them out to minister, the apostles knew that Jesus would still be there when they returned to help resolve any issues that may have arisen.

After the Ascension, the apostles realized that they were no longer assistants but had been promoted to leading and building the Christian Church. And no matter how much they learned from Jesus, they must have felt scared knowing that it was they, not him, who would need to make the decisions on where to take the Church. Remember, this came weeks after Jesus’ Passion which was a low point in their commitment to Jesus. And now they were going to be the ones in charge.

How many times did St. Peter need ask himself “What would Jesus do?”

God Knows We Are Ready

Many times, God calls us before we think we are ready. Any new parent knows that feeling of coming home from the hospital with a newborn realizing they are on their own to nurture this new life. Maybe your job, school, or parish is asking for your commitment to a new project or committee in your already-full schedule. Perhaps God is telling you through prayer that he wants you lead your life in a new direction.

As scary as these new situations may be, we have to remember that it’s all part of God’s divine plan for us. He has a personalized plan for each one of us that puts us on a path towards Heaven. He’s not going to lead us down a path we aren’t ready for. However, it requires great faith (aka: trust in God) to let go of our doubts and fears when God calls us out of our current routine into something different.

This is where faith built on routine prayer comes into play. We need to be prepared if God ever calls us to follow him along a different path. We’ll be more confident and assured if we already have a deep relationship with God because we’ll be following a trusted friend, not a stranger. Like Mary at the Annunciation and the apostles after the Ascension, we may not have all the answers and a clear idea of what God wants from us. But God has a plan and it’s a good one even if we can’t see it.

Sorry for talking about the Ascension a week after we celebrated it. Hopefully, I’ll write a post about Pentecost before Thanksgiving!

We Ignore God at our Own Peril

Large sins often spring from small beginnings. Few of us wake up in the morning intending to sin. I would hope that we strive to lead virtuous lives centered around following God. And yet, there we are every few months in the confessional asking for forgiveness. How can people with such noble intentions fail so often?

David, the Exulted and Fallen King

From the lay person to God’s anointed, we all fall into sin. Let’s look at the Second Book of Samuel in the Old Testament. King David committed adultery with the wife of one of his trusted soldiers and later set up that soldier to be killed in battle. Up to that point, David had been an ideal leader and follower of God. He consulted God on every decision he made. He showed immense faith in God leading the Israelites to victory in battle. He showed mercy towards his enemies like King Saul. How did such a great follower of God’s Will veer so far off path?

When you read the Second Book of Samuel, this story starts with David essentially taking the day off. He stayed at the palace and rested instead of staying with his men in battle. That’s where he saw Basheba bathing and his lust got the better of him. At that moment, David was no better than any other king of his day — using his power and authority to get what he wanted.

There was nothing inherently wrong with David wanting to take a day off from his duties as king and leader of the army. But because he decided to do something other than his duty, David slid into sin. The man who consulted God about everything decided to not only take the day off from work, but also from including God in his day. When David did his will instead of God’s, he committed adultery and murder.

Always Remembering God

It is so important to never stray from practicing our faith. And I’m not just talking about attending Sunday Mass. We need to include God in our day every day. We aren’t called to Christian virtue for one hour a week. It’s a commitment we honor every minute of our lives. When David consulted God, he was a good leader and mighty warrior. When he ignored God, he fell into sin. We are the same — we are strong when we lean on God and weak when we acknowledge no higher authority than ourselves.

How can we include God in our day? After all, many of us are busy with work, school, family, etc. There are many ways:

Pray the Rosary
Read scripture
Read theological books or blogs (but stay away from news and gossip)
Spend some time in church in front of the Blessed Sacrament
Pray the Liturgy of the Hours
Fast
Pray when you wake up and before you go to bed
Pray before and after meals

It comes down to having a God-centered mindset. Feeling stressed or anxious? Ask God for help. Feeling ill? Ask God to see you through it. Concerned about a loved one? Ask God to take care of them. We don’t need to shoulder our day and our challenges alone. When we include God in our day, we are mighty, like David. When we ignore God, we fall into sin, also like David.