By Katie Beckmann Mahon, Communications Manager
This week’s “Embracing Faith” article will focus on Embracing Faith through Self-Care.
"From the rising of the sun to its setting,
the name of God is to be praised.” -Psalm 113:2-3
To say that we all have spent more time than we should staring at our phone screens, watching television, clicking on our news alert updates, and scrolling through social media news feeds would be the understatement of 2020.
A few days ago, feeling exhausted from the overwhelming amount of news updates, I chose to put the phone down, go outside, and open up a book.
The book I chose was “Everyday Witness: 7 Simple Habits For Sharing Your Faith” by Sr. Terry Rickard, OP, a Sister of Saint Dominic of Blauvelt.
As I read Sr. Terry’s book, I found myself feeling a sense of peace and gratitude for choosing this book as I learned about how I can better understand and share my faith.
After finishing Sr. Terry’s book, I felt a great need to share some of the points that stood out to me in each chapter.
We should always choose joy – “Joy is a gift from God, released in us by the power of the Holy Spirit. It does not depend on events, but on a deep belief that in God, all will be well.”
We need to be humble – “To be humble means to live freely, thanking God for all we have and for all our accomplishments, knowing all is a gift. It also means that we approach another person with empathy and love instead of judgment.”
We have to preach from the pulpit of life – “I believe there are no coincidences in life, but only powerful moments when we can experience God working in ordinary ways. We discover these God-stories when we begin to reflect on life through a God-lens.”
It is so vital to pray unceasingly – “We are to be witnesses to our faith as best we can to those who lost their way, turned away from God, let go of a relationship with Christ, or abandoned the Church for whatever reasons.”
Listening with a cupped ear is something we should all do – “To be effective witnesses to Christ’s redeeming love, we need to listen to both to God and to those with whom we are moved to share our faith stories. We need to witness through deep listening – with a cupped ear rather than an open mouth.”
Practicing the art of accompaniment is essential for each person – “The Bible presents a variety of ways in which God has graciously initiated a relationship with us fragile human beings and encourages and accompanies us in every day.”
The world will be a better place if we all engage in God-Talk – “Do talk about what your faith means to you, do say what you are grateful for, and do share about the power of prayer.”
If you are interested in reading Sr. Terry’s book, you can purchase it on Amazon.