Our Dad's Toolbox
As I was preparing a talk on this subject for last month's Joe Catholic gathering, I thought of my Dad and his roll away toolbox. When I was in grade school my Dad was a machinist, specifically a lathe operator for
LTV. I remember him having two roll away toolboxes, one for his home tools and the "Big Red" one he had at work. I got to see the red one when he had his Christmas vacation (I would later learn these were actually plant shut downs).
Dad was very clear that my brother Tony and I were not to get any of the tools out of his toolbox. It had a lock, but Dad never had to lock because we feared what would happen if we sneaked a peak. When we reached high school Dad declared we were old enough to be entrusted with the use of his tools from the home roll away. He, like many fathers, made it clear we were to return all the tools in the same condition as we received them. Inevitably we each put one away dirty, left one in the rain that got rusty and even lost one. Owning up to those times was not easy, but we learned a lot about responsibility and accountability from those tools.
Our Father's Spiritual Tools
Our heavenly Father has equipped and entrusted each and every one of us with the necessary spiritual tools to succeed in answering
the call to universal holiness, to achieve personal sanctity. Unfortunately, like the boys we once were, we have let them get rusty, failed to sharpen some and even forgotten other spiritual tools.
A-Count-Ability
One of the first things my Dad taught us about the tools is that you had to account for what tools you had and where they belonged. His reasoning was that you cannot know what tools you need for a job if you don't know what you have. Similarly, this is how we need to make an honest assessment of the state of our spiritual toolbox. More precisely this is deeper examination of conscience, one that reflects on our daily use of the spiritual tools our Lord has provided us with. These include the Communion of Saints, prayer, the sacraments and spiritual reading.
Ultimately, this inventory of spiritual tools should be part of our
Spiritual Game Plan, what St. Josemaria Escriva called a
plan of life. I recommend ordering a copy of
Father John McCloskey's pamphlet - Seven Daily Habits of Faithful Catholics, available at
CatholiCity.
Spiritual Reading
Do you have a good Catholic Bible in your library? I recommend the
Revised Standard Version - Catholic Edition, published by Ignatius Press. Along with the Bible, you should have a copy of the complete (GREEN)
Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC). The CCC is the most comprehensive collection of Catholic teaching; it is what we believe.
Blessed John Paul II, in
Fidei Depositum, described it as "a sure norm for teaching the faith" and thus "a valid and legitimate instrument for ecclesial communion." The cross-reference index and glossary alone make the "green book" worth purchasing.
In addition to the Bible and CCC, you should incorporate some spiritual reading from other sound Catholic writers. You can't go wrong with starting with writings of the saints, classic works like Introduction to the Devout Life by St. Francis de Sales or The Way by St. Josemaria Escriva. If you prefer something modern, I recommend looking at the spiritual reading list on the
Joe Catholic homepage (right column).
Prayer
How can you say you are a man of God if you are not actively communicating with Him in prayer?
Scripture says we should
pray without ceasing (
1 Thes 5:17). This of course seems impossible for someone other than a cloistered nun or hermit monk. Actually it's not, if we begin to understand that prayer is more than words. When we begin to transform our lives into active prayer then we will begin to realize that we can
communicate with God throughout our daily activities.
Can we really
love God with our whole hearts, minds and souls when we allow other things in our lives to be more important? That which consumes most of our time is our God (not deliberately, but practically). What is your God? I know I watch too much online TV. If you don't know what is getting in the way of you spending more direct time with the Lord, I recommend a calendar drill in which you
log your entire day (a week is preferable) and see how you are spending your time. You will be amazed at how little time you devote to your relationship with God. As we approach Lent, this would be a good time to recalibrate and refocus our lives on Him.
Sacraments
One of the consistent recommendations found in studying the lives of the saints is frequent use of the
Sacrament of Reconciliation. The Church teaches that we are only required to go to Confession once a year or when we have committed a
mortal sin. Blessed John Paul II went weekly. Dr. Taylor Marshall outlined
Seven Reasons to Frequent Confession During Lent (or any other time). I once heard a talk in which the priest described frequent confession as "the rotor router of the soul." Our deacon recently recommended every two weeks. I believe this is also what Scott Hahn recommends in one of his books. I believe we should approach the sacrament in much the same way as physical exercise. If we have not been regularly exercising we should ease into it. I would begin with once a quarter and then build up to once a month and then twice a month or every two weeks. Try it; the grace you will receive will transform you.
We should strive to incorporate Daily Mass into our schedules. In the Dallas-Ft. Worth metroplex in which I live, we have numerous opportunities to attend daily mass, ranging from 6AM masses to 7PM. This is where a tool like
Mass Times comes in handy. Even if your schedule does not permit attending Mass everyday, you could still carve out a few days, starting with Wednesday (because of the
Wednesday devotion to St. Joseph), to attend daily Mass. Maybe instead of eating out for lunch, you go to Mass during you lunch break and eat at your desk while you work later. Better yet, you could skip the meal and
offer it up.
In addition to incorporating daily mass, we should all strive to participate fully in Mass. This means arriving to Mass a few minutes early to give yourself time to get in the right frame of mind and spirit. It also means that during Mass you actively listen to the readings and homily. I recently asked a group of men at a Monday gathering what the theme of the Sunday Gospel was and only a handful knew.
Spiritual Battle
St. Paul urged us to be vigilant because we are engaged in spiritual battle:
"For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places." (Ephesians 6:12.)
St. Peter warned that we should "[b]e vigilant at all times for your enemy the devil is prowling round like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” (
1 Peter 5:8)
Would you let an intruder in your home harm your family without defending them with your very life? Then why would you not put your life on the line for their souls!?! We must man up and stand up to fight.
We, the living, are part of the Church, we are the Church Militant. We are the warriors fighting the powers and principalities set on the destruction of as many souls that they can sink their claws into. We wage battles and war against these evil powers through prayer, fasting, and alms giving. We are at war, for real.
Conversion
Conversion, which means change, starts at home, including our own parish and those we encounter in our daily lives. We MUST begin to take a supernatural, spiritual outlook on our daily lives. If not, then how are we any different than the rest of society? Do others know you are Christian by the way you live your life or are you an imposter, one who blends in with everybody else?
