Amazing Catechists

Teaching and learning the faith together

Interview with Sonja Corbitt about her book “Just Rest” and much more!

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Oh boy, is this a POWERFUL conversation about the spiritual life with one of my all-time favorites, Sonja Corbitt!

Come with us and see your “desert” times in a whole new way that will prove to you that the Promised Land is closer than ever!

Click the book cover image to join me and Sonja, as we “get real” about our desert times!

 

SONJA CORBITT is the Bible Study Evangelista and creator of the LOVE the Word® Bible study method–and journal, called “the best modernization of lectio” by the Associate Publisher of Thomas Nelson Publishing.

A best-selling author and Telly Award-winning broadcaster, Sonja’s weekly radio and television shows, as well as a variety of other unique approaches to Scripture, create space for busy Christians to hear and experience God though the scriptures.

Through her Bible studies and books, one-on-one consultations, pilgrimages, retreats, television and radio shows, Sonja uses Scripture and a healing charism to lead others to deeper rest and healing.

Find Sonja at BibleStudyEvangelista.com

Get Sonja’s Book!  https://www.avemariapress.com/products/just-rest

Looking for God? Now is the Time.

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We have all heard the warning about “living in the past.”  It’s not a wise thing to do.

I know that I often catch myself dwelling on this or that decision from years or even decades ago.  When this happens I find myself rehashing my reasons and rationales like some broken record.

There is no doubt that 20/20 hindsight can be a cruel partner, poking us every now and then.   Armed with the clarity of knowing results and consequences we torture ourselves wondering how we could not see the results of our actions or decisions way back when.

Not to be outdone, of course, are the ever-popular apprehensions about the future. After all, is not the future merely a blind curve teeming with unexpected traps and problems? Yet we rush  toward manholes and cliffs we will not see until it is too late.

Between the haunting past and the foreboding future, we have a ready-made plate of worries and ruminations at our disposal.  What we need to realize sooner better than later, however, is that God is neither in our rear-view mirror nor is He at the end of the blind curve that is our future.

Dwelling In The Past

There is a clear distinction between dwelling in the past as opposed to learning from the past.  The word “dwelling” means a home or where one resides or lives. It is not constructive, and it’s even destructive, to constantly live in the past.

Whether we constantly reflect on positive or negative memories and experiences, the mere fact that we keep re-visiting that past takes away from our focus on the present.  Spending all day thinking about my great high school experiences does little to improve my present situation.  Likewise, obsessing over the mistakes or poor choices I made in the past only tends to beat me down.

Of course there is nothing wrong with mentally glancing back at our past highlights or low points. The problem occurs when we dwell or entrench ourselves in a time which we cannot change now.  We gain nothing, and even retreat, when we define ourselves by our past, bad or good.  When we define ourselves by our past, we perpetuate that past far beyond its beneficial role in our lives.  The past should inform, and not define, our present and future.

Learning From The Past

God wants us to learn and grow toward our destiny with Him. But we cannot learn and grow if we wrap ourselves in our past.  Obsessing over past glory only invites complacency, presumption, stagnation, or even arrogance. Obsessing over past stumbles or hurts only brings  depression, resentment, regret, and even bitterness.  No matter how you look at it, the past that is obsessed over is a moral minefield most mortal humans cannot traverse safely.

We should use the past as a teacher for enhancing our future. The only thing worse than a mistake is a mistake one does not learn from and may even repeat.  Reflecting on past errors and taking steps to avoid those errors again is never a bad thing.  When we reflect on our past mistakes, we bring the wisdom of the past to our present.  When we dwell on the past, however, we drag our present to that past.

The Past is an Unhealthy Neighborhood

The past can be dangerous turf teeming with regret, remorse, resentment, revenge, bitterness, and ingratitude.  Armed with 20/20 hindsight, we see results and consequences that we could never have anticipated back then. Obsessing over what we should or could have done or what we did not do goes way past the productive stage.

Forgiving others or ourselves can be very difficult, if not impossible, for those wrapped in the past.  It is also practically impossible to appreciate the present if we are preoccupied with the past.  The devil wants us to sink in the past’s cesspool of vice and hopelessness.

Ultimately, those mired in the past cannot let go because they cannot trust in God’s mercy.

Leave The Future to God

Dwelling in the past is an invitation to be ungrateful for what we have and mistrustful of God’s Divine Mercy. At the same time, worrying about the future can be an invitation to be mistrustful of God’s Divine Providence.

While there is nothing wrong with glancing at our future and reflecting on our plans and hopes, this is very different from being anxious or even petrified of what that future will bring.  If the past is teeming with the potential for regret, then the future is overflowing with the potential for fear.

God wants us to learn from our past and plan for our future with joyful trust, acceptance, and gratitude for His many blessings. We are closest to God when we humbly ask for forgiveness for our stumbles and humbly embrace God’s Will for our lives.  Learn from your past and leave it to God.  Embrace your future and entrust it to God as well.

“Do not worry about tomorrow; tomorrow will take care of itself.” (Mt 6:34)

Find God in The Present

Fulton Sheen once observed that much of our unhappiness stems from excessive concentration in the past and extreme preoccupation with the future.  We cannot change the past.  We only have the potential to either simmer in it or learn from it.  Similarly, we cannot predict the future.  We only have the opportunity to become paralyzed before it or to embrace it by trusting in God.

God is found in our present moments.  He is present among the countless souls we daily encounter in great need for kindness, compassion, and love.  He is present in the wonders of nature that surround us each today.  Each moment is an opportunity to get closer to God in small and immense ways.  We can only relieve pain, loneliness, hopelessness, and sorrow in the present.  We can only reach out to wandering hands in search of a caring touch in the present.

Prayers about the past tend to apologize or hope. Prayers about the future tend to petition.  Prayers in the present, however, are the most opportune way to praise and thank the Creator.

Embrace each moment as an opportunity for salvation. Sanctify each moment with humble contentment and acceptance. Do not waste or tarnish each moment with apathy, or ingratitude.  Let God always be your answer to now.

2020  Gabriel Garnica

The Good Samaritan Revisited

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One of the hallmarks of what I will call relentless holiness is the drive and desire to go steps beyond the convenient, obvious, and practical. Thus, we often heard how Padre Pio advised his flock to pray many decades of the Rosary daily instead of the perfunctory single decade. It is with this spirit that I suggest we revisit the famous story of the Good Samaritan ( Lk 10:25-37 ).

We are All Travelers

The victim in this famous parable is a traveler who has been robbed and lies beaten on the side of the road. I do not know about you, but I have not come across any beaten and robbed folks sprawled across the sidewalk lately. We would like to believe that most, if not all, of us would try to help such an unfortunate person in some way. One would like to think that we would prove those cynics who believe that technology does not help us be better people wrong by using our cell phones to call for help.

This all reminds me of speaking about the Fifth Commandment to Fourth Graders in Catechism class.  Left at face value, there would be nothing to talk about since these children are not usually involved in murder. However, one can tell them that mocking, gossiping, criticizing, and isolating people for sport murders their spirit and well-being and can kill their chances of overcoming adversity.  In the same way, let us consider that we come across many unfortunate travelers on our daily journey who are prime candidates for some Christ-like assistance.  Ultimately, we are all travelers on our journey through life and, hopefully, toward God.  If we fancy ourselves true followers of Christ, we will see many opportunities to be Good Samaritans helping those struggling around us.

A Tale of Two Real Estate Professionals

A famous line in the real estate industry is the value of location, location, location.  Given this mantra, we may ask where our priorities,  hearts, and compassion are located.  Are we truly willing to help others whenever possible or do we just love to say that we do?  Do we only help people for a price in money, fame, business, or some other immediate benefit we crave?  Do we wax poetic about serving Christ and bounce around pollinating our own agenda even as we look the other way when we can help a fellow traveler?  To illustrate these points, I submit the following story of two real estate professionals.

Adam is a successful real estate professional with a well-established portfolio of accomplishment in many avenues and facets of his field.   He has managed to develop both traditional success in investment and resale but has also managed to achieve in online, publishing, speaking, and marketing areas as well.  His story reads like a textbook guide to starting from little and achieving much. By all parameters and indicators Adam is a very successful person helping others achieve their dreams. Ben, on the other hand, is just starting out in the real estate arena. He clearly has talent and a desire to help others, but he has been unable to make the most effective networks much less gotten any help at all from established pros like Adam.

Realizing and eager to achieve, Ben reached out to Adam in the hopes that Adam would help him become established. Ben also wanted to write books and do presentations in his field as Adam had done and he figured that a little help from Adam could help him get his foot in the door.  Now Adam charged high fees from clients and others wishing to learn from his experience and knowledge.  He justified those fees by arguing that nobody had really helped him break in and knowledge does not come cheap.  Ben could not yet afford those fees and he really struggled with getting connections and building a network like Adam had managed to do.

Words are Cheap

Ben repeatedly asked Adam for help and made his intentions of achieving the kind of success Adam has clear, but Adam turned a blind eye to those overtures. At one point, Ben directly asked Adam to have Ben do a presentation as a warm up to one of Adam’s speaking engagements. Ben also asked Adam to help him get published.  Adam ignored all of these overtures, requests, and opportunities to help Ben.  At one point Ben even directly asked Adam to mentor him a bit to which Adam began shifting the conversation to taking on Ben as a client for a fee.  Adam often expressed great faith and confidence in Ben’s ability to succeed and achieve in the field they both shared but, ultimately, he did nothing to help Ben along.

Eventually, Ben had some success, but with much less impact and extent than Adam’s achievements. Despite this modest achievement, Ben did his best to help others like himself find their footing in the field. He mentored others and even invited some to speak at his speaking engagements in the hopes that they too, would find a following.  When asked why he was so willing to reach out to and help others succeed, Ben simply stated that he had been given a gift to help others but that gift would be lessened or tainted if he also did not use that gift to help others to help others moving forward.

Do Not Be a Smiling Hypocrite

Given the above two men, I ask you to consider which, Adam or Ben, is truly an example of what Christ meant by the Good Samaritan.  Which of these two men is truly using his gifts to help others and to make a difference in the world. Which of these is all talk and hot air and which truly tries to live the kind of selfless, generous, and compassionate help that the parable of the Good Samaritan entails?

My friends, do not drone on about how much you love and care for others unless you are willing to help others selflessly and generously. Do not wail on endlessly about how much faith and trust you have in others’ road to success unless you can honestly say that you tried to contribute to that success within the means of your ability to do so.  In short, be a Good Samaritan, do not just sell yourself as one.

 

2019   Gabriel Garnica

 

Following Christ is a Series of Commitments

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In the Gospel reading for Sept. 8, Jesus tells us that truly following Him requires a series of continuous commitments.  But for many, such commitments are simply a bridge too far.

The commitments Jesus lists include “hating” our family, bearing our cross, and planning our path (LK 14:25-33).  Christ is telling us that following Him requires sacrifice, suffering, dedication, commitment, dedication, and planning.  This teaching ties back to previous readings where Jesus tells us we need to be humble (LK 14:7-14) and that we should strive to enter the kingdom through the narrow door (LK 13:22-30).

Following Christ

Many people are ‘turned off’ by the word “hate” in this reading.   But as Msgr. Charles Pope explains, “The use of the word “hate” here does not mean that we are to have contempt for others or to nourish unrighteous anger toward them. Rather, this is a Jewish idiom. For some reason, the Hebrew language has very few comparative words such as more/less and greater/ fewer . . .  So, what Jesus means is that we cannot prefer anyone or anything to Him.”

Our Lord was merely telling us that following Him must be our primary mission in this life, above all other commitments and missions. The ironic part of this concern is that the word “hate” is one of a litany of words so thrown about in our modern speech that it has somehow undergone a diabolic distortion.

Today this word is often used as a weapon of political, social, and media manipulation.  If an opponent does not agree with us, we call them a hater.  If anyone dares to express reservations regarding others’ actions and attitudes, we call them a hater.  Pretty soon, we will resort to calling anyone who gets in our nerves a hater. In this superficial and often lazy society, the mainstream media has taken over the mantle of description and perception of reality. Whomever the media calls a hater is, in fact, a hater.  No further explanation or justification necessary!

Some ‘Hatred’ is Actually Required

In truth, to hold Christ above everything else in our lives, we must develop a hatred, an aversion, or at least a disregard for anything and anyone who dares to stand in our way toward Christ. That of course includes sin but, beyond that, it includes not allowing the ingredients of sin to fester in our daily lives. Things such as resentment, bitterness, revenge, lust, and jealousy, for example, cannot be allowed to become squatters in our hearts, minds, and souls lest they become permanent squatters and, eventually, possessors of who we are.

Any strong feeling toward someone or something implies a passion or a love for that person or thing.  Likewise, any strong aversion or hatred for someone or something implies a total distaste and a commitment to avoid and distance ourselves from that person or thing.  Unless we find sin, toxic things, and toxic people revolting, we will leave ourselves vulnerable to those very sins, things, and people.  Ultimately, unless someone or something brings us closer to Christ, we must push that person or thing away on our journey and mission to help ourselves and others toward Christ.

Following Christ is About Genuine Sacrifice

While we have all heard that we carry our crosses in order to follow Christ, many of us brush this challenge off.  We have not seen too many folks hanging from crosses in our neighborhoods lately. We think of crucifixion as an ancient and primitive torture and punishment.  So we do not take it too seriously in our so-called enlightened world.  We do, however, understand that carrying our crosses means being willing to suffer and sacrifice.  But many of us now equate this with not eating chocolate during Lent.

In truth, the level and kind of sacrifice and suffering that we must equate with carrying our cross has never been watered down since Calvary. What has often been diluted, however, is our perception of what that cross actually means.  This is not about sacrificing chocolate or high fat diets.  It is about pushing away the false values and superficial concerns of this world. It is about placing Christ above anything this world promises and, in fact, above ourselves and our own personal agenda.

Following Christ Cannot Be an Accident

This reading also reminds us that following Christ cannot be an accident or a coincidence.   Being a follower of Christ is a serious and profound commitment.  We cannot possibly turn that dedication into a whimsical fancy to be followed only on odd days or whenever we are in the mood.

Our Lord compares this to building a serious structure or responding to a serious military situation.  If we seriously want to build something of value or be a soldier for any worthwhile cause, we do some serious planning.  Then we must dedicate ourselves to that which we plan to build or fight for.

We must also note that this building and fighting does not, however, imply random, headstrong, or mindless full-speed-ahead thinking.  We must be willing to take a step back, to pause, to assess our strengths and weaknesses, and to adjust our original plans. Temporary retreat is often the best response to immediate obstacles and setbacks if one is to obtain ultimate, long-term success.

Failure to Plan

In truth, sin is the result of accidental thinking.  When we do not plan, we fail to prepare. We fall to the whims of human weakness and nature. In our quest for Christ it can truly be said that if we fail to prepare, we prepare to fail.

If we consider the temporary shine of sin threatening our eternal salvation, we begin to get a sense of just how foolish and mindless sin really is. Assuming that we actually care and want to save our souls, then it makes absolutely no sense to lose that treasure by committing any sin.  Yet we do it every day.

Sin is the epitome of foolishness and of stupidity.  Yet we engage in such stupidity all the time. Are we, in fact, stupid?  No, we are just weak;.  And that weakness causes us to accidentally slip into the utter failure of sin.

My meaning here is that God has given each of us enough intelligence and common sense to realize that sin is the ultimate stupidity.  However, He has also given us freedom of choice. So too often we choose to be stupid and vulnerable to our own human weakness.

If we would approach every day like an intelligent and careful builder or a general constructing our path to Christ and confronting the forces that pull us away from Him, our God-given gifts would put us on the path to eternal salvation. Sadly, we tend to stumble through each day, oblivious to the forces that threaten us.  And we inadvertently build our eternal resume on flimsy ground.

Christ’s Lesson

Ultimately, if we do not put Christ above everyone and everything else, we are putting ourselves above Christ.  If we are not willing to fully sacrifice and suffer for Christ, we are also putting ourselves above Christ.  All sin is about putting ourselves above Christ.  If we fail to plan and prepare to do what we have to do to follow Christ and serve God with our God-given gifts, we are again putting ourselves above Christ.

Given all of this, this Gospel reading is really telling us that reaching eternal salvation means putting away our mirrors and stopping our fascination with ourselves above Christ.  Following Christ is about keeping our eyes on the prize and that prize is not a selfie.

 

What is Your Eternal Job Description? The Lesson of Martha and Mary

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The recent gospel story of Martha and Mary (LK 10: 38-42) is one of the most powerful and profound expressions of an eternal struggle many of us face on a daily basis.  People grapple with their ‘job descriptions’ every single day, just like Martha was doing.

Quite often our job description is about as secular as it can get.  We focus on what we need to focus on to succeed in this world. The next day, however, we sway toward a crooked, but hopefully sincere, struggle to define our ‘eternal’ job as saving our own souls and those of others while serving and loving God and others.

While a certain amount of shuffling between a secular and our sacred, eternal job description is allowed in our daily pilgrimage through this world toward God, we must always take stock and adjust.  We need to maintain the overall direction of our efforts – facing due Heaven and not due earth. What are the signs that we are straying toward earth more than toward Heaven in this daily struggle?

Burdens

In Luke’s gospel,  Martha feels burdened by her earthly tasks and complains to Our Lord. Whatever earthly loads we may be carrying, feeling burdened certainly seems par for the course regarding all of them.  Earthly tasks carry physical, emotional, psychological, social, financial, practical, and many other kinds of burdens.  As physical beings, we will certainly feel those burdens on a regular basis.

Our burdens can surely tire, frustrate, and exasperate us.  While it is both normal and expected that we will all feel these strains from time to time, there is a high correlation between our eternal job description and just how much and how regularly we are feeling such burdens.  Those with an earthly focus will tend to feel more and increasingly burdened by these loads because earthly burdens tend to seem all-consuming and endless.

In fact, earthy burdens sometimes seem insurmountable and pointless.  They can overwhelm us.  We can feel lost as to how to handle them, and wonder how they can possibly lead us to any good.  A couple consumed and obsessed with buying a home, for example, may pull themselves in all directions trying to save for their goal.  They can even lose hope that they will ever achieve it in the light of their difficulties.

Isolation and Abandonment

Martha also expressed resentment that Our Lord did not care about her plight.  Martha felt she was being left all alone to deal with her burden. Once we become distracted or lost in an earthly focus, however, we measure and judge according to the dictates and standards of this world and not of God.  Negative, earthly feelings such as resentment, anger, bitterness, and jealousy creep in.  These secular standards and measures tell us that we are getting the short end of the stick and even being treated unfairly by God and others.  Ironically, we will feel isolated and abandoned by God and others precisely because our self-obsession and warped self-pity will not allow us to find fulfillment or joy in focusing on the needs of others.

It is easy to see that Martha was only focused on herself in this situation.  She was feeling unfairly treated and did not care to see anything other than that view of the situation.  Martha even went as far as to judge and question Our Lord’s stance in all of this!  Do we not do the same when we pray for something and then resent it when we feel our prayers are not answered?

Enticing Others to Our Mistake

Martha’s resentment and frustration led her to ask Our Lord to make Mary join her in her mistake!   I have often read that one of the devil’s greatest delights in pushing us to sin is successfully convincing us to join in his mistake of rejecting God.  Misery loves company, and Martha’s self-obsession leads her to demand that Our Lord order Mary to make the same mistake that she has made.  This warped delusion of self and righteousness goes as far as pretending that one’s foolishness is actually one’s enlightenment and that others should follow one’s “light.”

Our Lord tells Martha that she is worried and anxious about pointless things that will not ultimately amount to a hill of beans to her eternity. We stray from the path to Our Lord to the extent that we seek our treasure among things that do not lead us to him.  Washing dishes and making beds are not inherent evils.  Fixing the car and installing a new garage door opener are not inherently bad.  Fixing the air conditioning and paying our bills are not superficial and useless tasks.  However, while we should focus on and accomplish these things as we can, we must never reach the point of worrying and obsessing over these tasks and duties as if they are all that matters. Such worry and obsession only pushes God to the background for another day.

Where is God to You?

When we become fixated with things of this world over what matters to heaven, we tend to push heaven to the background and even change how, and even if, we see God at all.  If you see God as some sugar daddy who will come to your rescue whenever you need Him, you have lost the proper place of God in your life.  Frankly, I am not sure which is worse:  forgetting God or distorting what God is.  If God is not found in your preoccupation or consideration of some issue or burden, then perhaps you are mired in an overly earthly focus.

The story of Martha and Mary reminds us that we have a daily choice to embrace God or this earth.  Too many times, we become so wrapped up in accomplishing what this world expects or even what we think this world expects that we forget what God expects from us.  While doing our best to fulfill our tasks and duties in this world is important, we can never allow those tasks and duties to displace God as the center of our lives and focus.

Always place God first, place your earthly burdens before Him, and trust that He will guide you through these struggles!

2019  Gabriel Garnica

Breakthrough Resources

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Coaching happens in the gap between where you are and where you want to be

Image courtesy of Pixabay

Dear Friends in Christ,

Attached are the resources I shared in my recent webinar for Catholic creatives, utilizing coaching techniques to break through in life and art. Please feel free to email me with questions or to request additional resources. I may eventually create a monthly newsletter for breakthrough resources if it seems helpful, but in the meantime, I will keep updating this page.

Text or Email the word COACHING for information on private breakthrough coaching and/or groups for Catholic creatives.

Text: 631-235-9340

Email: lisa@mladinich.com

Coaching is About Your BEST Life:

  • Breakthrough: a prayerfully facilitated exploration of your challenges, personal values, dreams, and goals brings accelerated progress toward living a powerful life
  • Empowerment: learning to live into your authentic values and vision creates clarity and momentum, as you acquire skills that last a lifetime
  • Satisfaction: learning and growing beyond your expectations, while knocking down barriers to success
  • Teaching: optional group sessions provide a like-minded association of Catholic creatives prayerfully connecting and providing support, as participants learn from each other’s insights, struggles, and successes

Private Coaching:

  • 1 free, private introductory session to help you decide if coaching is for you
  • 3 private, 45-minute sessions per month, by phone
  • Sessions begin with a brief prayer, which you may lead if you like
  • Each session is a gentle, guided exploration of whatever brings you to the coaching conversation
  • As the client, you are always in charge of the focus of every session
  • As your coach, I listen deeply and prayerfully to what God is speaking into your heart
  • I stay open to wherever that exploration takes us and ask powerful questions that help you step into new perspectives
  • Coaching provides clarity that allows us to co-design steps toward your goals, with your preferred level of accountability
  • Many additional resources are provided or recommended, as needed
  • It is my pleasure to provide ongoing support between sessions
  • $180 per month

Breakthrough Group Coaching:

  • 1 free, private introductory session before your group begins
  • 2 group sessions per month, online
  • 1 private lesson per month, by phone
  • No more than five participants to a group
  • Every online session includes a short presentation on a topic of interest to the group
  • One-on-one coaching, LIVE, in the group–with each participant in control of the focus of their coaching
  • Takeaways, support, and observations from the group accelerate growth
  • $125 per month

CREATIVITY BOOSTERS (summarized from recent webinar)

  1. Mind-mapping for non-linear brainstorming: https://www.mindmapping.com/mind-map.php
  2. Writing with pen and paper to get ideas moving faster
  3. Working out to release the subconscious
  4. Napping to awaken to creative ideas
  5. Dressing up to change your perspective
  6. Reading to calm your brain and generate ideas

RIGHT-BRAIN ACTIVATORS

  • Asking open questions: who, what, why, how, when?
  • Doing something backward (writing, walking, using your non-dominant hand)
  • Naming wrong (spend a few minutes pointing at things and saying the wrong name for them)
  • Sensory stimulation (get outside and use your senses)

Breakthrough Resources

FREE self-assessment tools for gifts and clarifying purpose: (Perhaps start with the VIA strengths test—a well-regarded alternative to Clifton Strengths.) This site has other assessments as well. https://www.authentichappiness.sas.upenn.edu/testcenter

values-exercise (superb worksheet for identifying core values, as a basis for visioning and purpose work)

Creating a Statement of VisionPurposeMission (worksheet with Scriptures)

18-Wheel-of-Life-Exercise

LIFE_CALLING_ASSESSMENT

Goal-setting Worksheet (.jpg)

Remember that you are irrevocably gifted and called:

For the gifts and the call of God are irrevocable.

(Romans 11:29)