Weekly reflections
"I am the way and the truth and the life"
-Jn.14:6
-Jn.14:6
Faith can lead us to handle our addictions with an "avoidance mentality" if we don't see the bigger picture.
Last night in Youth Group, we discussed how TV, Movies, and Music impact us more than we care to admit. Speaking for myself, I fully admit that a lot of my down time is engaged in social media or sitting in front of a screen. So at first our group was making resolutions to simply avoid watching so much TV. Sounds simple enough right? As our conversation went on, though, we realized that it was tough to think of alternatives to TV and playing video games. It was actually kind of depressing! Finally, after some deliberation, we all agreed to make one new friend this week. Isn't that interesting? So often we intuitively know that we should spend less time in a certain activity, but we have no clue what to do instead; so we ignore our consciences, continue in our ways, and don't grow as persons. The mentality of avoiding TV and Netflix is not enough to overcome these small addictions. We have to see the bigger picture of maturing into the Saints we are called to be. As Jesus said, "Do not be afraid" (Mt.14:27). We can all grow in maturity by changing our mentality of avoiding screen time to growing in our love for others. Go visit a nursing home, work out, ride your bike, read a book, make a new friend... the list goes on. There are so many alternatives to being couch potatoes in our living rooms. Let's be Saints!
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Prodigal: spending money or resources freely and recklessly. How often this describes us! Sometimes we are like the prodigal son when we go to the mall: spending on whatever catches our eye. How well do we budget our time, money, and talents? Admit it. You didn't need to spend an hour on Facebook today.
We don't always invest in what's best for ourselves because we get so easily distracted. A car is simply meant to get us from point A to point B... BUT LOOK AT THAT BMW! I MUST HAVE IT! Our materialistic culture guides our decision making process more than we care to admit. We lose sight of the IMPORTANT things that we need to invest in. Jesus made no such mistake. It's interesting that we really don't see much of his yearly budget, but of course he had one, right? I mean the guy traveled all across Israel constantly. He wasn't always conjuring up 5,000 loaves. I guess the point I'm trying to make is that money served a specific purpose for him: fulfilling his mission in life. Jesus wasn't known for wearing the nicest clothes and riding the most expensive donkeys. He did invest in some nice things, such as comfortable Last Supper arrangements, but it always served a purpose. Even youth groups can get caught up in having the nicest facility, serving amazing food, having the most members. Trust me, I would know :). But we have to remember the bigger purpose of why we're doing things. As a resolution, let's imitate the example of our Lord and strive for more purpose in the way we budget our resources. Is there some primordial being existing outside of time that created time, space, and matter? How can we know?
We probed this question in high school youth group last night and realized that, although it is reasonable to believe in God, there is no scientific reasoning that proves God's existence. A level of faith is required. Our Middle School youth experienced God when they brought simple gift bags to the Nursing Home on Tuesday. Seeing the smiles and gratitude on the faces of their residents as we passed out gifts and sang them songs was an amazing experience. God is love, and visiting those who are sick is always an experience of love. While we may not be able to prove God exists, we can certainly see him in his works. Just as we can know an artist by studying his works, so too we can know God by experiencing his love in one another, his masterpieces. In my own experience, I never enjoy service work until I'm actually doing it. Elliott Walz, our Facilities Director at St. Pius, had some great insights in his talk to our High School Youth Group last night.
When he was volunteer working one time, he talked about how he enjoyed it, but felt like he could be doing more. This led him to pursue a heavy machines license so he could help more by driving fork lifts, etc. Service helped him discover his passions in life, and now he has a great job here at St. Pius X doing what he loves. Let's get our youth excited about service work. As John Paul II said, "Do not be afraid. Do not be satisfied with mediocrity. Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch". When we serve, we find ourselves and improve the lives of everyone we touch. |
Spencer MoseleyYouth Minister Archives
January 2017
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