Strengthen the man, strengthen the family;
strengthen the family, strengthen the Church;
strengthen the Church, fix society!
There are a few different ways that a Catholic man can witness Jesus. Perhaps the most common way is through the Mass. The Mass is the centerpiece of the Catholic faith. It is central to the believer's relationship with God, and it is through the Real Presence of Jesus that enables the believer to experience God's love.
Another way to witness Jesus is through prayer. Prayer is the language of our hearts and by talking and listening to God we can grow closer to Him. Finally, a Catholic man can also witness Jesus by serving others. Doing good deeds is a way to show how we love God and want to serve Him.
Many Catholic men who are in sales know about having an elevator pitch, or a ten-second statement about what they do. For me, my elevator pitch for Jesus is my spiritual mission statement. When I was in a business men’s bible study, represented by several Christian faiths, there was a saying we had that went something like “You know a Christian when he walks through a room”. So, reflecting on this, ask yourself how does my life as a Catholic man serve as a witness to my circle of influence, my co-workers, and as spiritual leader of my family?
For example, one day I was listening to a podcast with Bishop Robert Barron about evangelizing through social media. What it came down to, as he put it, is you don’t only look at the comments on your Social Media posts but, understand that for every Comment, Like, or Share there are twenty-five or more who’ve seen it. And so goes with walking through a room. If it were Jesus don’t you think His presence in a room today would make a statement, no matter if the people in the room knew it were Him or not?
No, you’re not Jesus, but, how’s it going for you?
This reminds me, when I met St. John Paul II and St. Teresa of Calcutta you could feel ‘LOVE’ radiate from them. It's fascinating to think about what our "love" might look like if we put it into action. After all, love is a continually growing journey, a work in progress, helping each other make it through life.
Bishop Joseph Perry calls this
intentional discipleship -
"
This means we take the message of Jesus Christ seriously and apply it to our lives to the best of our ability without equivocation while encouraging others to do the same. This is evangelization."
Do we really love Jesus as our savior, with Christ residing in our hearts? In other words, do we live our lives with a true sense of purpose and meaning that others can sense it 'radiates' from us.
Of course, if we want to
sell ourselves, we need to have a life mission statement. What is it about you that God wants people to know? Is there something you want to achieve or learn? Put your thoughts into words and share them with the world!
For example, my life mission is “To be the best version of the man that God has called me to be, the best husband and father for my family, and to be a ‘real’ person in the lives of enough people to make a positive difference in the Archdiocese of Chicago.”
A Life Mission is making the Mission Statement personal to the point of living it, eating it, breathing it, sleeping it, etc. (you get the point). It’s transforming Holy Church into Holy Life(style).
If you’re interested in how to find your spiritual elevator pitch or mission statement, a good place to start is with cleansing your Soul through Confession. The next step is to work slowly, day-by-day, to develop the Virtues of a Catholic Man (PDF). Many of the Saints, for example, transformed their shortcomings into Virtues. Spend much of your prayer time learning to listen to the prompting of the Holy Spirit.
Praying, going to Mass, and being spiritual leaders in your households and communities are all great ways to give back to God and have an enriching personal relationship with Him.
On the other hand, have you noticed there are few men in the church pews compared to the sports stadium. Some people say this is because men in the church are seen as being less capable than women. Others say that this is simply because men are not as interested in church as women are.
Watch this video about being men as Fr. Burke Masters describes the man who decked out his family for a Cubs game, but said he'd let them choose their faith (and about going to Mass).
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