Winning souls for the Kingdom of God is the goal of every warrior for Christ who loves the Lord, His Church and Her mission of salvation. Unfortunately, the "devil" really is in the details. Scripture tells us to fight the good fight, win the race, and that we are in a Holy war. As a warrior for the Lord, we must recognize that sometimes the "battle raging" mentality tends to turn many a sinner off these days while others are really open to the "RAMBO" approach at salvation. This is why one of the first order of winning souls really requires we know the soul we are trying to win for the Kingdom. This requires a willingness to build RELATIONSHIPS!
All relationships require respect. Respecting the individuality of the person, their understandings of God, sin, redemption, eternal life, the Church and the like, based on the current knowledge they process on this matter is a vital step towards building a relationship with the seeker. The holy warrior's willingness to accept a person where they are at without rejecting or condemning the person is vital to the mission of salvation. So if one is going to relate well with a fellow seeker, the holy warrior must be sure he relates well with himself. A strong warrior has a deep appreciation for the gift of the family God has blessed for all His children. The family is where relationships are formed and where foundations are built to create new ones.
The whole salvation plan is a relationship. God loved us and is not closing the door on a relationship with us, for scripture tells us: where there is life there is HOPE. God will bring a seeker to a warrior and sometimes both the warrior and the seeker are challenged to greater heights of holiness. Other times, the warrior is humbled by what to him may seem a failed attempt at guiding a seeker to salvation, but in reality was only designed by God to plant the seed in the seeker and humble the warrior so that he will become more dependant on his God. Other times the warrior can lose heart and find himself lost and more confused since the seeker tripped him up by giving him rebuttals he was not able to refute. This disheartened warrior can get lost in his confusion and choose to give up the Faith entirely as seen with many a priest or religious who have chosen to no longer relate with God in His Church. The warrior who stays where His God has chosen to reveal Himself most FULLY is the warrior who can more fully relate others to salvation.
Relating the seeker into salvation is what Christ did for His Followers and is continuing to do through His Church. When Christ walked the earth, He never lost His relationship with His Father. Instead, He made it His mission to invite others to share in this most beautiful relationship He has with His Father. This is the Good News. The fact that we are given this opportunity to enter into the greatest relationship ever is the invitation to living the eternal life in eternal happiness! The warrior who partakes of this Holy Fellowship with God can't stop himself from sharing this love with others in both his words and deeds.
The warrior invites the seeker, not to be entirely in a relationship with himself, but rather to join him as he lovingly relates with the THREE RELATING PERSONS IN THE ONE AND ONLY GOD! Our God is a relating God. He is a family of THREE PERSONS in the Holy Trinity. Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The Father's love for His Son is alive in the Holy Spirit, Who makes True Love a possibility for all those who are willing. Relating with GOD is what should make the salvation plan all the more inviting. The problem is far too many chose to LOVE THE DARKNESS INSTEAD OF THE LIGHT.
Through it all, the warrior in "battle" must come prepared for a fight. There are two fights going on here. The fight for the seeker's soul but also the fight to protect his own soul in the process. This requires much preparation through prayer, scriptural devotion, the holy sacraments, fasting and other forms of sacrifice but above all it requires that the warrior have a sincere love for sinners, while seeing the sinner within himself. To love in this manner is a God given gift for the warrior is able to see God's children as Christ sees them. The best example of this kind of love is seen in the mother's love for her child. The love of a parent for their child is the kind of love that the warrior must have for those he wishes to "relate" into salvation. This kind of relationship is where much fruit can be produced and in a day when fathers are away from the homes, the need for fatherly relationships continue to increase daily.
We need fathers to father us on our journey of faith. This is why we really should not have any problem calling our priests, "father." The problem some priests may have with the term is only one that is derived on the unfortunate predicament many a priest finds himself in these days. With his very busy schedule and tremendous pressures to keep the lights on, far too many priests today have done less relating with their flocks, being forced into concentrating on the pressing administrative duties instead. Don't get me wrong, administrators serve a vital role within the Church today. The problem is, the seekers require fatherly affection not easily found in the priests who are running the extensive logistics of operating a church structure.
Let us never forget that scripture tells us: GOD IS FATHER TO THE FATHERLESS. This scripture seems to indicate that He will make sure He reaches those who seek to be fathered despite the lack of HARVESTERS IN THE HARVEST. The problem here is that there are far too few REAL seekers. This is why Christ asked His disciples to pray that God would send more harvesters. For it is the holy men and woman of God who inspire others to think in a more holy manner. Those who encourage us to think in a more worldly manner far outnumber the Harvesters of Christ's day as well as our own.
But we have hope in the warrior who understands that in CHRIST ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE. The warrior must remember that without Christ he can do NOTHING. With this in mind the warrior must rely and cooperate with the work of the Holy Spirit in the midst of ALL his relationships. If the warrior simply leans to heavy on his own understanding or on the basic psychology of the day he will soon see major obstacles in his mission. Finding a happy balance here requires the warrior to have the ability to look beyond the physiological to the spiritual side of the person but without discarding the physical in the process. Those who are locked in a deep psychological pain and have chosen to "self-medicate" themselves with years of illicit drug use can develop a mentality that they can make God, religion or people their new found addiction.
Many a seeker have chosen to seek God the way they sought out drugs; to "solve" their problems. Replacing one addiction with another is a common practice of those who have fallen to substance abuse or are simply used to using people as objects instead of human beings. The problem is, our God simply will not allow anyone to use Him in this manner because using anyone is not what allows a relationship to build. Just as drugs will not solve problems, God is not to be looked upon as some kind of "Magic Jeanie" Who will grant all our wishes. The warrior who encounters such a seeker must help this person see why he feels the need to use people as things instead of persons. The warrior must be able to recognize if a seeker is truly seeking God for a real relationship with Him or simply looking for another form of addiction or usury.
The warrior must be confident. There is a holy confidence given to those who are faithful to Christ. Saint Paul found this confidence when he wrote: I have finished the race, I have fought the good fight. For this reason the warrior must pick a side and will be held accountable to the side he picks. With the more than 30,000 Christian religions out there today, the warrior must choose a team to fight with.
He must know, understand and defend all the commands of his religion and be willing to uphold them with all his being. This is why it can take up to 8 years to become a priest. Many a seminarian have chose to leave the seminary after learning of the great discipline that is required and finding they simply do not have a strong enough conviction in the Faith.
We can't simply be a warrior without making sure we know our comrades. The comrades are the ones who share the battle with us and the hope is that all comrades will fight the same good fight with the same good intentions. The reality, of courses is quire different. Many a Catholic picks and chooses what he will and will not follow in the Faith. As Catholics we must chose to uphold the mission, vision and values of the Catholic religion and this means we follow the leadership of our Commander and Chief; the Pope. Any type of leadership can feel oppressive at times. Today, many find the leadership of the Faith to be oppressive.
A warrior simply cannot cooperate with the mission of salvation when his loyalties are divided. Christ has warned us of the dangers of serving two masters. The Catholic Faith requires that we know what Her teachings are because in every army mutiny is a common illness. For this reason it is vital that the warrior knows all that his Faith requires of him. When a vital teaching does not rest well within his spirit, he must prayerfully ask God why he feels this way and seek the direction of the Holy Spirit to enlighten him on this matter. In time a deep sense of peace that the Church is being guided by the Holy Spirit may or may not come to the warrior. The mature warrior knows that he does not rest on his feelings but on the direction of the Holy Spirit within the Church. This is why the warrior must make sure he's always following the leader, not any of the rebellious soldiers within the leader's ranks. Such a commitment to the Truths of the Faith will allow the warrior to give the right kind of valuable information to the seeker.
Just like in any battle, rest for the warrior is so very important. Retreating to a quiet place to be with the Lord will prove to be a much needed haven where much healing can take place. The warrior is a "wounded healer" and by his stripes others are healed. Just as Christ required rest in his battle, we too must take rest by prayerfully recognizing how we have been graced (both painfully and happily) by the relationships our God has blessed us with. The warrior will encounter many who will look at the warrior and say he is crazy to reach out to the ones they find offensive but the true warrior knows that he is simply the vehicle God is using to send forth much needed grace to the broken, sinful seekers who long for truth found in REAL relationships. In his quest to be REALLY present to the seeker, the warrior is simply trying to live out his calling to find the hidden Christ in His distressing disguises, as Mother Teresa once explained.
Just when you think you are ready for the good fight, you may really not be ready. The most important demand of the warrior is that he makes sure he is LIVING the Faith he calls others to follow. Living ALL that is required by the Church is vital because the warrior will be challenged by the seeker at many levels. This is a good thing since this proves that the seeker only wants to make sure that living out the Faith is doable and is simply looking to the warrior to prove this fact by the way he lives out what he believes.
The warrior's motto must be: THERE, FOR THE GRACE OF GOD, GO I. On the road to salvation, Christ has commanded that we love our enemy as we love ourselves. On His path to salvation as the warrior invites others to join him, he will come across many who will appose and even hate him. He must never hate them in return but instead must be all the more willing to lovingly pray for them, while always hoping they will have a change of heart towards him. The seeker can also become an enemy on a mission to prove your beliefs to be wrong and his beliefs to be far superior.
The seeker may not look like an "enemy" in fact he may even look like an "angle of light" or like "wolves in sheep's clothing," but in reality we will know them by the kind of fruits they produce. For the warrior it is very important that he recognizes his own weaknesses and the real potential he has for being his own worse enemy. The warrior must never disregard or try to justify his owns sins. Warriors for Christ must look at the many ways in which they have lived contrary to the will of God and expose them to their confessor. This is what keeps them humble and will allow them to be truly compassionate to seekers when sharing their Faith.
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
In Fear and Trembling
How are we to work out our salvation? Philippians 2:12-13 "...work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure." This is why it really ROCKS me at my core when I come in contact with a priest who is leaving the Faith to follow his convictions; convictions that are not consistent with what the Church teaches. Case in point is the case of Father Geoffrey Farrow from Fresno, CA. This priest left the Church because he could not support the Church's teaching on homosexuality. Father Geoffrey Farrow admits that he is a homosexual and states he is following his conscience on this matter. One can't but help admire his courage in following his convictions BUT still feel great sadness for what he and the Church has lost. Click here.
Numbers 32:23, "But if ye will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against the Lord: and be sure your sin will find you out." Back in 2007, CNN reported that a gay priest was found in the Vatican. What an embarrasment after the Pope just expressing the clear teachings of the Church on this matter only to learn that a priest under his nose had gotten caught soliciting sex from a young man on the internet. Click here.
What is even more upsetting for me are the priests I have come into contact with who do not uphold the teachings of the Faith, yet they stay under the "radar" and simply live their lives as heretics!! We see them going through the motions and see where they rebel in small ways against certain practices. One can't help but wonder as to why they choose to stay in a Church that simply does not recognize their ideas of LOVE. Most likely it is because they are cowards simply waiting for their pensions to kick in. Click here.
The line is being drawn in the sand these days and the Church is using a strong finger to draw that line. This is the time that the good priests will shine all the more brighter. This struggle between the "cultural" catholics and the faithful followers will not be pretty. Sean Hanity had a run in with a well known Catholic Priest. Click here.
What do you think about this matter? How do we respond in a loving way to this very difficult matter? Did Father Geoffrey Farrow do the right thing to go public with his convictions or should he have privately left the Church?
Whatever your thoughts, never forget to pray for those who go up against the Pope.
Create in me a pure heart, oh God ~ Psalms 51:10 Click here.
Phil Brady
Numbers 32:23, "But if ye will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against the Lord: and be sure your sin will find you out." Back in 2007, CNN reported that a gay priest was found in the Vatican. What an embarrasment after the Pope just expressing the clear teachings of the Church on this matter only to learn that a priest under his nose had gotten caught soliciting sex from a young man on the internet. Click here.
What is even more upsetting for me are the priests I have come into contact with who do not uphold the teachings of the Faith, yet they stay under the "radar" and simply live their lives as heretics!! We see them going through the motions and see where they rebel in small ways against certain practices. One can't help but wonder as to why they choose to stay in a Church that simply does not recognize their ideas of LOVE. Most likely it is because they are cowards simply waiting for their pensions to kick in. Click here.
The line is being drawn in the sand these days and the Church is using a strong finger to draw that line. This is the time that the good priests will shine all the more brighter. This struggle between the "cultural" catholics and the faithful followers will not be pretty. Sean Hanity had a run in with a well known Catholic Priest. Click here.
What do you think about this matter? How do we respond in a loving way to this very difficult matter? Did Father Geoffrey Farrow do the right thing to go public with his convictions or should he have privately left the Church?
Whatever your thoughts, never forget to pray for those who go up against the Pope.
Create in me a pure heart, oh God ~ Psalms 51:10 Click here.
Phil Brady
Friday, October 16, 2009
Believing in God and His Church
I just found a priest name Edward on youtube who left the Church back in the mid 60's. He lost his faith in GOD and in His Church from what he calls a problem he has with God allowing so much pain and suffering in the world. Here is what I shared with him and give me your comments:
Yes there is a God, Edward. To believe there is no God is to give into great sadness. I too have served in the Church and have found many priests, theologians and others who serve rejecting many important teachings of the Church and who serve in quiet rebellion against the Holy Father. I lost so much respect for many priests and fear they quietly lead many astray with their "tickle the ear" theology and their unwillingness to uphold very important teachings of the Catholic Church. Yet I believe in God despite the many sad things I see in the world and in His Church because if I rejected His existence now, I would be really hopeless.
I choose DAILY to believe in the Eucharist despite the fact it goes against my rational thinking but fits perfectly with the challenge our Lord demands for us to trust in Him. It is very easy to rationalize our Faith away and it seems you have done this. You will always be a priest for all eternity so why not be a great one who believes despite what the natural mind holds on to! Be brave and DO NOT BE AFRAID to trust Him with all that is not normal, or rational or easy to understand.
Take that step out of your atheistic 'comfort zone' of your own making and get back in the Church so your testimony will stand as that of Christ in the Garden, when He too asked for a different cup that seemed to make more sense than the one He was being given to drink from. Be brave and come back so you can show others how to take a risk worth taking, the risk to be what God is demanding us to be: FAITHFUL FOLLOWERS OF THE CRUCIFIED KING! His victory waits for us on the other side, we just have to take hold of it and know that IT IS FINISHED. Your doubts only are opportunities to become what God intended you to become, HIS CHILD. Look at the doubting Thomas who was given the opportunity to believe without seeing the risen Lord and how sad it was for him to lose such a blessing to believe without proof! This is the kind of Christian our Lord is calling you to become. Don't miss the opportunity.
Phil Brady
Yes there is a God, Edward. To believe there is no God is to give into great sadness. I too have served in the Church and have found many priests, theologians and others who serve rejecting many important teachings of the Church and who serve in quiet rebellion against the Holy Father. I lost so much respect for many priests and fear they quietly lead many astray with their "tickle the ear" theology and their unwillingness to uphold very important teachings of the Catholic Church. Yet I believe in God despite the many sad things I see in the world and in His Church because if I rejected His existence now, I would be really hopeless.
I choose DAILY to believe in the Eucharist despite the fact it goes against my rational thinking but fits perfectly with the challenge our Lord demands for us to trust in Him. It is very easy to rationalize our Faith away and it seems you have done this. You will always be a priest for all eternity so why not be a great one who believes despite what the natural mind holds on to! Be brave and DO NOT BE AFRAID to trust Him with all that is not normal, or rational or easy to understand.
Take that step out of your atheistic 'comfort zone' of your own making and get back in the Church so your testimony will stand as that of Christ in the Garden, when He too asked for a different cup that seemed to make more sense than the one He was being given to drink from. Be brave and come back so you can show others how to take a risk worth taking, the risk to be what God is demanding us to be: FAITHFUL FOLLOWERS OF THE CRUCIFIED KING! His victory waits for us on the other side, we just have to take hold of it and know that IT IS FINISHED. Your doubts only are opportunities to become what God intended you to become, HIS CHILD. Look at the doubting Thomas who was given the opportunity to believe without seeing the risen Lord and how sad it was for him to lose such a blessing to believe without proof! This is the kind of Christian our Lord is calling you to become. Don't miss the opportunity.
Phil Brady
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