Most local parishes are like salmon swimming upstream in a current that can potentially keep them from achieving their desired goals.  Through great effort, they can achieve their goals, but it will not come easy. Satan will make sure of that!

As I travel around the country working with parishes on implementing the New Evangelization, it has become clear that most parishes are not even close to being ready to implement it. I could see several reasons why, but there was one factor that was eluding me. I was simply not able to put my finger on that critical cause to why they couldn’t.

After months of asking God why and staring at the problem, a saint at one parish said something out loud and the cause became crystal clear. We are not forming disciples, we are forming volunteers!” It is almost as if we have settled for moving our lethargic people from inactivity to little activity. Why have we settled for less?

It is all or nothing!

As Satan, working through the culture, has influenced many of our people to settle for less, we have begrudgingly followed suit. Instead of holding up the truth bolstered by lives of authentic faith, we have grown fearful of giving our kids, teens, and adults the real faith. I watched for years, groups that were fearful of preaching the truth and tried to substitute it for fun activities for the teens. As if we could compete on that level with the world.

We do not corner the market on fun; we corner it on Truth, Life, and Love. Instead of trying to convince our people to add “a little bit of Jesus” to their already busy life, we should return to the truth of the Gospel. They have a choice to make Eternal Life with God or Remain with Satan forever.

We must return to preaching the truth and living lives of authentic faith that draw others to want THAT LIFE IN THE SPIRIT, that enables them to live in the truth. As for now, we are settling with forming “good people” who volunteer some of their time to the church. We have settled for tithing 10% of our time when Jesus asks for 100% of our lives.

“Consider this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.”  II Cor. 9:6 (NAB)

There is a cost to following Jesus Christ. It isn’t a portion of your life, but a free gift of all of it back to Him.  Every true Disciple of Jesus has come to understand that reality, even if they cannot fully live it yet, that is their aim. Jesus told us that if we wanted to be his disciples, we must “deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow him.” Matt. 16:24 (NAB)  

THERE IS A HUGE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN GIVING GOD A LITTLE OR EVERYTHING. WHICH ARE YOU TEACHING?