Day 365: So Be It (2857-2865)

• It’s Day 365!!

• MCNUGGET DAY!!

• Let’s pray!!

Prayer by Fr. Mike: “Father in Heaven, I thank you. I thank you for this opportunity, this chance to learn, this chance to hear the truth as articulated to us through the Catechism, by your Church that you founded upon the rock of Peter, that you founded upon the Apostles that you filled with your Holy Spirit and have brought to this day. Thank you so much, Father. Thank you for this chance. I thank you for all the people who have worked on this project. All of them, every single one of them, from those who have the biggest, most important, and most visible jobs, to those who have the least visible jobs, that we might never hear of. But because of them, because of their willingness, their hard work, their perseverance, we get this incredible gift of the Catechism. We get this incredible gift of this podcast. Thank you so much. And Father, thank you for every person who has pressed play, those who did The Catechism in a Year, and those who are just finishing now the Catechism in 2.5 or 3 years. Lord God, I thank you for every one of them. I ask that you please, just like your Son Jesus prayed, I ask that you keep them in your hand. Lord God, keep them close to your heart. I pray for them. Hold us, and help us hold on to you. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen”

• So there we have it!!

• Paragraph 2857 says, “In the Our Father, the object of the first three petitions is the glory of the Father: the sanctification of his name, the coming of the kingdom, and the fulfillment of his will. The four others present our wants to him: they ask that our lives be nourished, healed of sin, and made victorious in the struggle of good over evil.”

• The sanctification of His name

• The coming of the Kingdom

• The fulfillment of His will

• We want to give us a heart like His Son’s

• “God, give me a heart like your Son’s. Unite my will to that of our Son so as to fulfill the plan of salvation in the life of the world.”

• Then we have the last 4 petitions

• GIve us this day our daily bread

• Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us

• Lead us not into temptation

• Deliver us from evil

• We are praying all of these because we realize that we have this incredible dependence on God

• This world 

• Our hearts

• Our lives

• WE ARE BROKEN!!

• God is so good that He wants us to bring EVERYTHING to Him and to entrust EVERYTHING we have to Him

• That is why we say, “...give us…”

• We have the heart of children who trust in their Dad

• “Ok, God. Ok, Dad. Our Father. You know what we need. And so we are children who trust in you to give us exactly what we need.”

• When we started The Catechism, we were saying that this is not just about information transfer

• THIS IS ABOUT TRANSFORMATION!!

• This last PILLAR 4: HOW WE PRAY has been…

• SQUIRREL!! (FOR THE LAST TIME!! 🤣) Up - Dug the Talking Dog - "Squirrel !" 

• All of the Catechism is meant to affect our life

• It is meant to bring us to a place of conversion

• PILLAR 1: WHAT WE BELIEVE (THE CREED) is meant to shape our lens so that we see God as He truly is

• I see salvation and faith and His Revelation and ourselves in each other as we truly are meant to be

• PILLAR 2: HOW WE WORSHIP is meant to shape how we worship God

• How do we approach God?

• How do I realize what God is doing in my life and in this world, by the Power of the Holy Spirit

• What Jesus made possible, the Holy Spirit makes actual

• That is supposed to shape the way we approach the Lord in the Sacraments

• PILLAR 3: HOW WE LIVE is a challenge for us

• It is convicting for us

• Hope we didn’t throw anything way

• Hope we engaged and wrestled with the stuff we need to wrestle with

• BUT…

• It is also meant to CHANGE US in how we live

• PILLAR 4: HOW WE PRAY shows us that we can’t do anything without prayer

• If we do not take what we have learned and apply it to how we see the world, sure it was just a good exercise

• If we don’t take what we have learned and apply it to how we worship and approach the Lord and let Him into our lives through the Sacraments, then it was just interesting but not impactful

• If we hear Christ’s call to live as Christians in this world and we think it’s just an interesting note and just acknowledge it, but we don’t actually let it change how we live, then what was the point?

• To read and listen and learn about prayer is wonderful, amazing, so good

• BUT…

• If we do not become PRAY-ERS we are missing the most incredible opportunity

• GOD LOVES YOU SO MUCH!!

• YOU NEED TO KNOW THAT!!

• GOD KNOWS YOU!!

• Isn’t it crazy to realize that it matters to Him whether or not we know Him?

• It matters to God whether or not we have faith in Him

• Isn’t it amazing?

• It actually matters to the God of the Universe that we worship Him in a particular way

• It matters to Him that we show up for Mass

• It matters to Him that we participate

• It matters to Him that we let Him heal us through Reconciliation

• THAT IS NUTS!!

• THAT DOESN’T MAKE ANY SENSE!!

• Why would it matter to the God of the Universe what we do in PILLAR 3: HOW WE LIVE?

• It is bonkers to realize that it matters to God whether or not we are honest

• It matters to God about how we live out our private property

• It matters to God how we live out our relationship with our parents and with our children

• It matters to God how we live our relationship with the people around us

• It matters to God what we do with our sexuality

• Isn’t that crazy to think?

• BUT…

• IT MATTERS TO HIM!!

• WHY??

• BECAUSE YOU MATTER TO HIM!!

• Why in the world would the God of the Universe want our attention?

• Why would it matter to God whether we have, like St. Thérèse said, a gentle glance turned toward Heaven?

• Why would God want us to look at Him?

• Why would that matter to God?

• THE REASON IS BECAUSE YOU MATTER TO GOD!!

• That is why it matters whether we know God

• That is why it matters whether we worship God

• That is why it matters how we live

• That is why it matters whether or not we pray

• BECAUSE YOU MATTER TO HIM!!

• YOU MATTER TO GOD!!

• This time of transformation is a big deal

• This time of conversion is a big deal

• Why??

• BECAUSE YOU ARE A BIG DEAL!!

• The greatest big deal, the Lord Himself says so

• Don’t take Fr. Mike’s word for it

• LOOK AT THE CRUCIFIX!!

• THAT IS HOW MUCH YOU MATTER TO HIM!!

• LOOK AT THE EUCHARIST!!

• THAT IS HOW MUCH YOU MATTER TO HIM!!

• St. Teresa of Calcutta said, “When you look at a crucifix, you can see how much He loved you back then. And when you look at the Eucharist, you can see how much He loves you right now.”

• THAT IS HOW MUCH YOU MATTER!!

• God declares that YOU are worth His very life, death, Resurrection, and Ascension

• IT IS THE TRUTH!!

• So what do we do?

• WE SAY AMEN!!

• YOU ARE LOVED!!

• SO BE IT!!

• You are worth His very life, death, and Resurrection

• SO BE IT!!

• GOD SAYS THAT YOU AND YOUR LIFE MATTERS!!

• “Ok, God. If that is the case then Amen. So be it.”

• Thank you so much for spending this time with Fr. Mike and with the Catechism

• It is mind blowing all the people who contributed to the writing of the Catechism, the editing of the Catechism, the team at Ascension who made the Ascension Edition of the Catechism

• These people gave their lives so that we can hear these words

• We are grateful to them

• I am so grateful to you

• When Fr. Mike says he is praying FOR YOU every day, he actually is

• EVERY SINGLE DAY!!

• He doesn’t miss a day

• If he does miss a day, he prays twice the next day

• Fr. Mike is STILL PRAYING FOR YOU!!

• Please pray for Fr. Mike and for each other!!

• IT IS FINISHED…

• GOD BLESS YOU ALL!!!

• I CANNOT WAIT TO SEE YOU TOMORROW!!