Podcasts

Go and Make Disciples

Published on: by Joe Galloway Comment

This Holy Trinity Sunday we hear Jesus give us His great commision in Matthew 28:19, “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit.” 

Being a disciple is living a life of Stewardship. We become better disciples when we embrace and practice stewardship every day. As stewards, we acknowledge that God gives us everything. Everything is gift from God: every moment of Time, every ounce of Talent, every dime of Treasure. We gratefully receive and cultivate these gifts from God. And we share them out of love for others. When we do, these gifts then come with the fruits of the Spirit: Love, Joy, Peace. They manifest themselves in how we speak and act. This very way of living Stewardship evangelizes others. Our joy exudes. Peace emanates. Others see this and are attracted to us. They want to know our “secret”.  

The secret is that good stewards are so confident in God’s love that they can’t help but share His love with others. Good stewards trust God to provide and so give of their entire self – Time, Talent, and Treasure – for the good of others. Living stewardship allows us to be a part of something big, something more majestic than our own selfish drives and desires. Live stewardship and be a part of the Church’s mission to evangelize, to make disciples of everyone you encounter.

            Photo Credit: Robert Davis

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Pentecost: To each the Spirit is Given for some Benefit

Published on: by Joe Galloway Comment

Pentecost: 1 Corinthians 12:7   To each individual the manifestation of the Spirit is given for some benefit.

We are all, each of us, filled with the Holy Spirit by virtue of our Baptism, and sealed with the Spirit at our Confirmation. It is given to us for some benefit for the good of others. What would your life look like if you embraced that truth and surrendered to the Holy Spirit with boldness and courage? Your life would be so filled with joy that you couldn’t help but praise God and love your neighbor.

A couple of the fruits of the Spirit are generosity and kindness (Gal 5:22). An attitude of generosity is the heart of stewardship. We gratefully receive God’s gifts. We manage them faithfully. And out of kindness, we care about what is best for our neighbor. Our trust in God to provide and our obedience to His word drives us to generously and courageously share our material resources to make sure our most vulnerable neighbors are fed, clothed, housed, educated – in other words – loved. Their lives change for the good. The health of our cities is improved. Our world becomes a better place. If all of us would respond to God’s love, heed the promptings of the Holy Spirit, step out in faith and give to the needs of the poor, we would change the world. We would literally renew the face of the earth (Ps. 104:30). 

                                                                                                                                                              Photo Credit: Robert Davis

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What Does it Mean to Witness?

Published on: by Joe Galloway Comment

Acts 1:8, “You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” How to be a witness? What does it mean, what does it take to witness? Let’s approach it this way: 

Take a moment and think about all the blessings in your life.

Family, Job, Health are cited most often, and they’re big and important blessings. But did you also think of God’s unconditional love, His grace and mercy and forgiveness, His suffering and dying on the cross for our sins so that we can have eternal life with God in heaven. 

Oh My Goodness. It is overwhelming. 

Acknowledging these blessings elicits a response. And how else can we respond but in all humility, give praise and thanksgiving to God. And to give back. To give courageously of our Time, Talents, and Treasure. This is how good stewardship is a witness.

Living stewardship sets a great example for others. People see you doing good which glorifies God (Mt 5:16). They see how your participation in the larger and more majestic mission of the church brings you such joy and happiness that they will want to learn more about how you get that. This is being a witness. This is evangelizing. This is how we are the very disciples who Jesus tells to be His witnesses throughout Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.

Living stewardship is one of the best witnesses we can make. How does your giving bear witness to God’s love for you and all the blessings and benefits He gives to you?

 

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What Does It Mean to Love?

Published on: by Joe Galloway Comment

John 15:17   This I command you: love one another.

What does it mean to love someone? Jesus tells us in verse 13, “No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” We are to put aside our own needs and desires, and be more concerned for the wellbeing of others. 

St. John repeats this commandment in 1 John 4:7, “Beloved, let us love one another, because love is of God.” As stewards, as disciples of Jesus, we want to do what God wants us to do. He wants us to love, to love others as He loves them, to be self-sacrificing and other-centered. 

How do you know that you love someone? By how much you give to him/her; by how much time you spend with them. You give to who and what you love. You want the best for them. You sacrifice for them. How does the amount of time you spend with your family illustrate your love for them? Is the amount of time you spend and the money you give to God truly reflective of your love for Him?

Photo Credit: Robert Davis

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I am the Vine, You are the Branches

Published on: by Joe Galloway Comment

John 15:5   I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing.

How do you remain in Jesus? How do you deepen your discipleship? Thankfully, the church gives us a panoply of resources and opportunities to stay close to Christ. Let’s consider them.

Going to Mass. Of course. Make this a priority on the schedule. Don’t let anything get in the way of going to Mass. Not kids’ athletic events. Not vacation. Not the desire to sleep in, as if your pillow is worthy of worship. 

Reading the Bible. The church prescribes Bible readings for every day. Over a three year period, these readings essentially cover the entire Bible. There are many apps which provide those readings along with reflections on them. I use two primarily: The Word Among Us and Laudate. Make daily reading a habit.

Spending time in adoration. Many churches have an adoration chapel. People sign up for an hour where they sit with Jesus, pray, contemplate, and read. If you can’t do that, can you take 10 minutes out to visit an adoration chapel to spend time with Jesus?

Confession. I am always nervous to go. But I am always pleasantly surprised by how good I feel afterwards. Then I think how silly I’ve been. It’s not like I can hide anything from God.  

Last but not least, and maybe the most – Prayer.  Knowing I need to spend more time in prayer, one Lent I gave up doing crossword puzzles and spent that time, instead, in prayer. That very Lent, the Holy Spirit pinged me with a reflection on the Our Father. Here is an excerpt:

Prayer purifies our intentions and relates everything we do to God. Jesus gives us the ultimate prayer in Matthew 6:9-15, the Lord’s Prayer. This is the most complete prayer we could ever pray, bringing us into a closer, more intimate relationship with God, our Father. We pray it so often that it may seem rote. But let’s dig into some of the phrases to consider how the Our Father leads us to go deeper in our discipleship.

Our Father 

Our Father (6:9). The opening phrase states right off the bat who we are. We are God’s children. As children, we are heirs to all of God’s promises, the best of which is eternal life with Him if we believe, if we have faith in Him. We can be sure of His love. We can trust in His care for us.

Thy will be done (6:10). Not my will. God’s will. My faith in Him allows me to trust that His will is better, bigger, and perfect for me. I do well when obedient to Him, even when I think I’d rather do something different.

Give us this day our daily bread (6:11). God provides. God will provide. We can depend on Him. He is the source of every breath we take, of every minute we have, of every measure of talent that we use, of every dime of treasure that we earn. 

Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors (6:12). Forgive and be forgiven. Forgive and be at peace.

I plan to spend more time in prayer. I hope you do, too. And I hope this becomes a habit beyond Lent. Let’s be more intentional when praying the Our Father. Let’s resolve to be more trusting of Him, more obedient, forgiving, and dependent. Then after praying the prayer, let’s sit in quiet, soaking in His love, and listening for Him to tell us how to be a better disciple – a better steward.

Do these things – prayer, confession, Bible reading, going to Mass – and deepen your relationship with Jesus. Do these things and remain in Him.  Remain in Him and bear much fruit.

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