The joy of conversion, Christian community, and the Catholic faith
In 2000, I was sitting in a megachurch with a juice box in my hand, wondering what had gone wrong. The worship service had a back-to-school theme, and the church was trying to shoehorn a communion service into it as well. Thus, the juice box. Even as an Evangelical, I took the Lord’s Supper seriously, although I was taught that it was just a symbol. I didn’t have the words to describe it then but, if I had, I would have called this sacrilege.
“Thy will be done …” From heaven Jesus became a helpless baby, lived a human life full of work, sweat and pain, and fulfilled his destiny by dying in agony on the cross. He did that out of obedience to the Father and love for us.
Like a marathon runner who has finished the race he proclaims his victory. He appears to lose the race but in three days he will smash the chains of death. He has paid the price for our sins, a price that’s beyond counting.
“Thy kingdom come …” Every soul that God has ever created and ever will create he wishes to be with him in heaven for eternity. Jesus is so committed to us that he suffered torture and death to make that happen. His thirst is for the salvation of all people.
You can help quench part of his thirst by accepting him into your life. You can be a cup of fresh water for Jesus.
Have you ever been hurt by someone you love and trust completely? The astonishment is often greater than the pain; you simply cannot believe that person did it. Jesus was one with the Father. He knows his Father is not abandoning him, but the real suffering of the cross brings out his anguish in these words. The Father has not abandoned Jesus. He will not remove the cross, but he will stay by Jesus and see him through his ordeal.
A unique faith story hides inside each of us, waiting to surprise us as we discover it and to inspire a friend or stranger as we share it. As Catholics, we don’t stand up in church and declare our witness of how Jesus saved us. Rather, we find quiet moments over coffee with a neighbor or coworker to bring up our spirituality casually. Or perhaps we may reveal a little of our relationship with the Lord in a discussion group at Bible study. We let our faith story leak out to those we trust. Like me, you may not always be ready to give a good answer.
“Acquire the Holy Spirit and thousands around you will acquire salvation” – St. Seraphim of Sarov
St. Seraphim dreamed big. Honored by both the Roman Catholic (today) and Orthodox (January 15) calendars, this wonderworker emphasized seeking communion with God as the true purpose of life for every Christian. St. Seraphim’s life demonstrated that everything else was merely the means for “acquiring the Holy Spirit.”
Wait! Didn’t we acquire the Holy Spirit at baptism and weren’t we sealed with the gift of the Spirit at Confirmation? Can’t we acquire more of the Holy Spirit in the Sacrament of Reconciliation or receive the Eucharist? A resounding “yes” to all of these.