Podcast

Today we’re talking about the times when practicing our faith feels more like a burden than a blessing. There are weeks when we lose our zeal for disciplines like going to Mass, reading scripture, or serving others. During these moments it’s important to shift our mindset and think of spiritual practices as opportunities, rather than obligations. Remember, God gave us the Commandments so we could lead meaningful lives and find eternal happiness — two goals worth striving to achieve!

On this podcast we’ll learn that:
– Faith is a gift we should be grateful to accept
– We can renew our faith by finding practices we enjoy, whether we focus on prayer, reading scripture, or volunteering at church
– God will ease our journey if we ask Him for help

In today’s podcast, we’re talking about how to respond to Jesus Christ in our everyday lives. Are we ready to surrender to all that Jesus has done for us?

In this podcast we’ll learn that:
– Life is made up of responses, including “no”
– The way you respond to Christ has eternal consequences
– Both Peter and Judas betrayed Jesus, but their responses made all the difference.

In this bonus episode, I interview my friend, Fr. John Riccardo—founder of Acts XXIX and co-host of the “You Were Born For This” podcast.

During our conversation, Fr. John shows how today’s priests and bishops were formed for a different era than the one we’re living in, which is making their ministries less effective than they could be. Today’s era is an “apostolic era,” one that is either agnostic or hostile to Christianity. Ministering to people in an “apostolic era” requires a different set of tools than most priests and bishops are equipped for. Fr. John’s ministry is devoted to helping retool our clergy and lay leaders to be more effective.

Much of this retooling revolves around the story of the Gospel—how it should be told, how we should receive it. It’s an overwhelming story. It’s powerful. In fact, Fr. John talks about how in the original Greek translation, when St. Paul says “The power of God is salvation,” the word he uses for “power” shares the same root as the English word for “dynamite.” In other words, the Gospel is EXPLOSIVE. It should ROCK YOU. It’s not a nice and cute and sweet story. It’s LIFE-CHANGING. It’s time we believe it to be so. And if we believe it is truly life-changing, then that demands that we live our lives differently

In this podcast we’ll learn:

• The story of the Gospel, and how it should truly CHANGE YOUR LIFE
• The differences between the Christendom Era and the Apostolic Era
• Why God allows bad things to happen in the world.

On today’s podcast, we’re talking about free will and how the choice to change our lives is up to us. During Holy Week, it’s important to reflect on how Jesus did the work to save us by dying on the Cross, but we are not called to be passive observers. Instead, we are challenged to demonstrate our belief in Him through our thoughts and actions.

Many of us say we want to quit drinking, doing drugs or watching porn, but we need the numbness that accompanies these habits. Well, Jesus isn’t interested in our excuses, he’s interested in our salvation.

In the podcast we’ll learn that:

• Jesus loves us unconditionally and wants us to be well
• We should reflect on repeated sins and unroot the causes
• Jesus offers us a new life, but He will not choose it for us

Don’t want to miss an episode? Subscribe to the podcast on your favorite podcast player.

Today we’re talking about the pitfalls of overcommitment. Overcommitment begins with the best of intentions: coaching our kids’ teams, being the go-to guy at work, leading volunteer committees at church or racking up hours at the local food bank. Soon enough our busy schedules sink us to a level of distraction that steals our joy and depletes us of peaceful time with God, family, and friends.

On this podcast we’ll learn that:

• Overcommitment leads to feelings of anxiety and resentfulness
• Our devotion for Jesus is not proven by a long list of volunteer and church duties
• It’s important to take an inventory of where we can best use our gifts, instead of spreading ourselves too thin

Don’t want to miss an episode? Subscribe to the podcast on your favorite podcast player.

In this episode, we’re talking about St. Joseph with Fr. Don Calloway. For a guy who doesn’t say anything in the Bible, St. Joseph was an incredible man. He’s someone all men can call upon to help them live with purity and virtue.

In this episode, we discuss:

• St. Joseph was a heroic man who defended Mary and Jesus
• St. Joseph probably wasn’t an old man
• You can learn a lot about St. Joseph by looking at Jesus.