FROM FRANK: HOW TO BEGIN LIVING OUR FAITH

Over the next few weeks, one of our parishioners, Frank Norton, will be sharing his life journey as a Catholic: how his faith has developed and grown over the years, how he lives out this faith on a daily basis, and lessons learned along the way. Please join us in following this series!

“And just as Moses lifted up the serpent the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life. For God so loved the world that he gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish, but might have eternal life.” John 3:14 to 3:16

“Begin!” Easy to say, easy to spell, but then the hard part – Do It. How often do we get stuck intending to turn good thoughts into actions? I can’t count the times over the years somebody else’s action has slapped me in the face with long-shelved ideas of mine about improving – work, play, family, health, community, and oh yeah, FAITH. I owe a lot of thanks to a lot of people. It took me awhile, but I finally got it. My priorities were opportunistic, not well thought out nor long lasting, and certainly not fulfilling. In short, I was constantly chasing society’s “usual suspects” – skills and knowledge acquisition, healthy living, career advancement, superior academic and sports opportunities for the kids, great vacations for the family and, of course right on schedule, Sunday Mass.

I was growing in things of the world, but my Faith growth had settled into contentment with where I was – lots of knowledge and a place in my “schedule” for Faith practice. Again, my Jew–turned–Christian friend Shelly came to the rescue. One day he grabbed me by the arm and said, “let’s go chow down and have a talk.” In his always insightful and plain speaking way, he blew away any contentment I had about the strength of my faith life.

Knowledge Of + Emotional Commitment To Jesus Christ Is Living Our Faith

With Shelly’s nudging and cajoling I started building a friendship with Jesus as a historical human, and more importantly, as an “always with me friend” guiding me in living my faith.

Yes, I still pursue more knowledge about my Roman Catholic identity. What’s different is my emotional connection to a real human friend who is God.

I’m a daydreamer. Lots of times I find myself wandering around Jesus’ life 2000 years ago.

I watch him in all aspects of his daily life. He becomes alive, a real person, someone I trust, someone who make me feel free, confident, happy, accepting of whatever is happening. Now, my faith is all encompassing –– cognitive and emotional. It’s with me 24/7 –– when I’m with family and friends, when I’m working, when I’m having fun. It’s who I am in all the ways I’m connected to the world. No more scheduling faith practice. I’m free to be me all the time, no rigid rules, just living life as a Roman Catholic, surrounded by Jesus in all those people I have contact with daily

Of course there are challenges, tough moments, losses. But, they are wrapped in real benefits, blessings and better life results. Take a few minutes to daydream about it.