The Gentle Lion: JPII Up Close and Personal

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We knelt down. I clutched his hand. Fighting back overwhelming tears of joy, we kissed his ring and received his saintly blessing. He spoke to us, briefly, through muddled speech and a wide grin.

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29 of the Best St. John Paul II Quotes for Young Catholics

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“Do not be afraid. Do not be satisfied with mediocrity. Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.” “What really matters in life is that we are loved by Christ and that we love Him in return. In comparison to the love of Jesus, everything […]

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15 Logical Reasons to Believe in the Resurrection

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St. Paul had to deal with a lot of 'high minded', philosophical types in his day. Most were very prideful, long on academics but short on humility. Some people back then claimed that Jesus didn't really rise from the dead (as we celebrate this weekend). Rather than mince words, Paul gave it to them straight (in the verse up above). Many people will tell you that 'based on human logic' the Resurrection makes no sense. The first thing we need to remember is that 'human logic' is not omnipotence. God makes it very clear that '(His) ways are not our ways, nor are His thoughts our thoughts.' (Is. 55:8-9)

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Finding Christ in a Secular Easter

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I recently heard someone ranting about how commercialized Easter has become and how there is “no trace of Christ” left in His holiday. I understood the person’s concerns and agreed, in part, with their assertions. The more I got to thinking about it, though, I felt like their thoughts, while valid, were a little bit short…sighted.

Christ is everywhere. His death and resurrection are everywhere. We just need to know where to look and how to uncover them.

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Embracing Advancement: An Exciting Life Support Update

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A couple of years ago, I sat in my office and watched a video that Life Teen posted of the newest Life Support box being packaged. I sat, awestruck, at the great things that were going to be coming my way. I got excited at all of the new Life Nights and retreat sessions I could plan with these incredible materials… and then I waited.

And waited.

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Who is God?: The Reason for Everything

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“The most important thing about you is what you think about, when you think about God.” This is one of my favorite quotes, and I think it’s so true! Since my faith is the most important thing in my life, I have noticed that how and what I think about […]

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I Thought I was the Youth Ministry Messiah

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I accepted a ministry position at a parish that had a floundering youth ministry program, and was confident I would rebuild it. In fact, at one of my first staff meetings I boldly declared that, “by the end of the year, there will be at least 100 teens at every Life Night.” I am the youth ministry messiah, and I have come to save your parish.

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Transformed by Christ: My Dad’s Incredible Conversion

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I could share my faith with anyone at my college, even become a full-time missionary where I would live a life of sharing, yet when I was home why was it so difficult to share Jesus with my own dad?

I promised myself that I would do all that I could to show him the love of Christ. I wrote him a long letter recalling all the ways I saw Christ in him and letting him know how much I loved and respected him in spite of all we had gone through. After this something began to change in his heart; an openness I hadn’t seen before.

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Insta-Jealousy

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This may lead to what I would like to call Insta-jealousy. This diagnosis includes (but is not limited to) jealousy of possessions, jealousy of relationships, poor self-image, self-doubt, loneliness, discontent, sadness, extreme longing, self-pity, and the occasional runny nose.

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Inspire(d): The Breath that Moves Us

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Swaddled tightly beneath a star-blanketed Bethlehem sky, God breathed gently yet powerfully. The acceptable time had come. The prophecies were now — at last — fulfilled. The Creator had invaded His creation on a mission of love and for the next three decades, peace and joy would be breathed and […]

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