Tag: Life

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Life’s Victories

If you’re one of the precious few who have chosen to press into God’s presence, here are five divine principles that can easily be incorporated into your daily living to help you grow even closer in your relationship with Him.

Not only are they simple, but when practiced with dedication, they become unconscious habits — much like the air you breathe!

  1. Have a Dedicated Time. Having a dedicated time each day to spend with the Lord is the first principle for forming the habit of being alone with Him. Choose a time of day to be with God, and then stick to it. Make a daily appointment with Him. Schedules may change, but make sure that any changes to your time with Him are the exception rather than the rule.
  2. Have a Special Place. Decide where your “Holy of Holies” will be, and then go there every day so He can “meet with you and speak with you” there (Exodus 25:22). It doesn’t really matter where it is, so long as it’s a place that’s quiet and peaceful for you.
  3. Be Free from Interruptions. Make sure your time with Him is free from interruptions. We all know what it’s like to be in the middle of a conversation when someone’s cell phone rings and they stop talking to us to answer it. Likewise, when that happens while we’re communicating with the Lord, it conveys a message that we’re really not paying attention to Him. Time with the Lord needs to be focused, directed, and uninterrupted.
  4. Let the Holy Spirit Dictate your Body and Soul. There will be days when you don’t feel like entering into His presence or being alone with Him because you’re too stressed, tired, or busy. On days like this, you can’t arrive at your decision to spend intimate time with Him based on your feelings. Instead, allow the Holy Spirit to lead you to His presence, regardless of whether you feel like it or not!
  5. Spend Meaningful Time with the Lord. If you desire intimacy with someone, you must be willing to invest meaningful time into the relationship. This is true if it’s a relationship between a husband and wife, a parent and a child, or two friends. And it’s especially true if you want an intimate relationship with God. Spending meaningful time in His presence is a choice and a decision. It’s a response to His invitation when He calls you to “come away” and be alone with Him (Song of Solomon 2:10). As you respond to the prompting of the Holy Spirit, your time alone with Him will become more meaningful!

Life can be hard. There are challenges and disappointments all around. They can be related to your finances, job, health, family, or friends. But with the help of God’s grace and strength, the joy of His presence in your life will help you achieve victory over any obstacle you encounter!

All He asks is that you nurture your relationship with Him and trust in Him to be in control!

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Sermon Notes – Choose Life

“Choose Life”

Father Peter Fitzgibbons

June 15-16, 2019

Scripture: John 16: 12-15

The other day, a young man who is working on his masters’ degree stopped by my office to ask me some questions about the Catholic faith. This happens from time to time, but this guy asked me an interesting question. He wanted to know what the Catholic Church has to offer Stanly County. I told him that the beauty of the Catholic faith is that we have the fullness and splendor of truth and the means for salvation. We are blessed. You can look it up in the Catachism. In 2000 years, that has never changed. Small changes have occurred such as the Kleenex hats that women wore at one time, but the teachings of Christ remain.

Unfortunately, many people don’t like the truth, but that doesn’t change it. When Christ told the rich young man he should give his belongings to the poor in order to gain eternal life, the man walked away because he couldn’t handle the truth (Matthew 19:16-22). Did Christ change His mind and call the man back? No. When He told the crowd in Capernaum that they must eat His body and drink His blood so that they could live forever, many of His disciples abandoned Him (John 6:54-66). Did Christ change His mind then? No. Because, the truth is the truth. So, when given the choice, choose life!

God is love, and His nature is love. He offers us salvation and precise ways in which to achieve it. We should be grateful, because we didn’t have to earn it…Christ paid that price for us on the cross. It’s a gift from Him. Do we deserve it? No, but, He gave it to us because He loves us. When we make mistakes, we are called to get up and try again. God loves even the most grievous among us. I visit prison inmates regularly…God loves them too. Some of those felons won’t be leaving prison until they die. Recently, I was talking to two young ladies and I told them that the only person who can drive Christ from your heart is you through sin. It can be hard to keep His commandments. I know, because I think a lot about me, and sometimes what I want is not what He wants for me. But, if we follow His commandments, we can live in His Love. You have probably heard the phrase “What would Jesus do?” The answer is do whatever He tells you.

There is nothing wrong with the Catholic faith. The problem lies in how we practice it. Faith, hope, and charity were infused into us at our baptism and are replenished through the sacraments. But, faith, unless applied, is useless. How do we apply our faith? By being generous to others who are less fortunate. Our generosity is the body of Christ in action.

We are not a small group. There is us and about one billion other Catholics. So, we are not alone, and we pray for one another. We are part of the body of Christ….a community of one. In contrast, Protestant religions are very divided and often consist of a small group of people in a building. In Statesville, there used to be two First Baptist churches…one white and one black. But, our faith is not determined by the color of our skin or our nationalities. We are all Catholic…not Spanish Catholic, French Catholic, or Irish Catholic.

How will you apply this message to your life? Will you put your faith in to action by being generous to others who are less fortunate?