It’s a crazy, divisive, cruel world out there, folks. If we watch too much news, or click around on facebook too much, it can easily get depressing. So much vitriol, so much hate. We all know that there is more to the story, more good in the world than meets the eye, but oftentimes the news only shares the worst and we buy it. As believers, our reactions vary, but usually end up in worry, anxiety and a desire to do something (anything) to combat the "evil du jour". Or we just turn it off, plug our ears and block out the evil, pretending our little communities are the only reality. We ALL want to see God's kingdom come on earth, but oftentimes we don't know the steps to get there.

Here is a crazy thought, what if we defined ourselves by what we were FOR rather than by what we were AGAINST? What if we loved like Jesus rather than adding to the noise and to the division?

Because here is the reality, we will never overcome evil by simply criticizing it. Not that we shouldn't critique. It's just not going to do us much good unless we create something better. Or better yet, participate in what God has already begun, what He is already creating. At the end of the day, if we are following Jesus, accepting His grace in our lives, we must be the catalysts that move agape love and mercy from a concept that is simply believed and preached in our churches to an actualized way of life. It's not enough to critique hatred, we must actually love. Not just a metaphorical kind of love, a real love, that takes action and moves and does. 

Jesus' enemy love is the solution He gave us to heal hearts and a diseased culture. It's His wild, ridiculous plan A. It’s the responsibility of the Church (you and me) to boldly point culture towards that hope that is found in loving others when it seems absolutely ridiculous to do so.

"Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust." Matthew 5:44-45
 
Evil says that some people are just too far gone, beyond hope, beyond God's mercy. Love says His mercy is for every single one of us, the pedophile, the racist, the preacher and the politician. Mercy is real the moment we accept it in our own lives and is made tangible the moment we show it to others, especially those who are the least deserving of it. Church, the hour is late. Love of neighbor includes the sinner, the oppressed, and the "too far gone". We can’t combat the darkness by simply criticizing it. It’s gonna take some bright lights. Let your light shine. 

"For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you salute only your brethren, what more are you doing than others?
Do not even the Gentiles do the same?
You, therefore, must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect."
Matthew 5: 46-48 

If you saw our update email a few days ago, you saw that we've got a bunch of speaking and travel to do in the coming weeks. And though we are extremely excited about meeting and serving with new and old friends, it's necessary to check ourselves each time we are asked to go. 

So what if I speak to tens of thousands... if I don't have love, I'm just a big noisy cymbal.

Big noisy cymbals... mic'd up... crashing in a church (or arena) with extreme amounts of reverb and echo. I literally can't think of a better image to be used for describing something so damaging to effective evangelism as that. When St. Paul chose those words in first Corinthians, he couldn't have chosen better. It's the last thing I want to be. The last thing we should want to be in a world starving for truth, beauty and goodness and Christ. 

And so we pray... God give us love, first and foremost, for each other, our children, our ten-foot radius. Give me grace to consider others better than myself, assuming the best and seeing their potential, not judging my neighbors, lest I am judged. When we are asked to speak on your behalf, let us do so with pure intentions. Your Kingdom come, your will be done. Amen.

​Honestly, the Catholic speaker culture makes me feel icky (yup, icky). Cana and I long for a day when it's not necessary at all, when the people of God love their neighbors and their own parishes so much, that it becomes obsolete. But until that day, we'll go where He sends us and preach where we are asked. We just don't want to skip the loving part in the process. 

Peace and Good! 
Ennie

"If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing." 1 Corinthians 13:1-3

It’s Ash Wednesday again. And here I am scrambling around, trying to make preparations to enter fully into this Lenten season. I want our home to reflect the change in the liturgical season. I want to make sure we have the appropriate reminders of penance and sacrifice. I want to make sure to stock the right kinds of food. I want all the best prayer journals, even the most beautiful and catechetical coloring sheets for the kids. I want…well, I want to do Lent right, maybe even perfectly for once.

Meanwhile the loving gaze of the Lord is upon me. He’s just here, smiling, loving me. He’s longing for me to quit doing and scrambling. While I am trying so hard to make it look like I really want what He wants, His loving gaze shines upon me, no matter what my Lenten preparations are. He waits patiently for me to be still, to let go, to simply receive His love.

Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, 
I will be exalted over the earth. Psalm 40:10

I think I’ve often viewed Lent as an opportunity to enter into battle -- and it very well may be. But until now, I may have been confused about who’s doing the fighting, and what or who the real enemy is. I have too often viewed myself, my sinful inclinations, and many imperfections as the enemy against which I alone am fighting. Lent for me has always resembled forty days of self help, in which I’ve sought to do battle against the evil that has taken root in my own heart. And while this might not be the worst way to look at Lent, I think it’s time I approach it for what it actually is. God is doing the work, it’s really just my job to receive. 

This Lent I’m giving up negative self-talk and it honestly feels like an impossible feat. But, I’m okay. I’m choosing to recognize that I am utterly powerless to win this battle against my own depravity. Instead of trying extra hard this Lent to crush my own weakness, I’m giving my feelings of inadequacy to Him. When I fail (because I will) I’ll seek to hear His loving voice instead. And instead of arming myself with a bunch of extra spiritual practices, I’m choosing to put on the full armor of God, and to hide myself in His power -- in order to slay not only my weaknesses, but also the true enemy who has LIED to me for so long about what those weaknesses mean!

I suppose it could kind of sound like I’m kind of wimping out on Lent this year, and maybe I am. But I think the reality is, I’m just in a place of utter surrender right now. I’m realizing that if I ever become holy, it will be His good work in me, not my own self help. 

Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm 
against the schemes of the devil.  - Ephesians 6:11

It sounds cliche to say "it could be worse". But, it's true. It really could be worse, but dang, that orange juice hit the floor with a fury and splashed onto every surface possible. And it wasn't even the giant puddle that put me over the edge. It was the millions of tiny sticky droplets splattering the cabinets, the tile, the refrigerator, the table legs and the dishwasher. On my hands and knees with a wet rag, holding back curse words, I was annoyed. Really, really annoyed. I had to find every drop before my wife got home. 

It’s not the first annoyance this week and it wasn't the only one yesterday. They happen all the time. Wifi is down, someone took your parking space, forgot your umbrella, your child locks themselves and the keys in the car, a massive zit on your forehead, the list goes on. Right? Our days are filled with these small inconveniences that if piled on, can really pull us into misery if we let them.

I think it’s too easy to say that things will get better. Because sometimes they don’t. And if it does get better, for how long? So rather than strive for a life devoid of annoyance, I think we ought to simply choose joy. Joy, because the Gospel is way bigger and way stronger than the things that are bugging us.

And the greatest gift of all?... when we accept these little pesky annoyances with joy, they can become for us small daily workouts that strengthen our virtue muscles and make us ready for even bigger trials in the future.

Few of us are given the gift of great trial. Most of us will become saints by enduring great annoyance.

I'm starting to think that when they write our biography, or eulogize us at our funeral, maybe it's not the worst thing if it's our ordinary discipleship that they talk about. Maybe loving God and loving people in our ordinary states of life, enduring small annoyances with grace, and celebrating life as it comes to us, is enough. Perhaps it's in this simplicity and smallness that we are made holy. 

"Count it all joy, my brethren, when you meet various trials, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing." James 1:2-4