Author: Mark Joseph

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Weekly Blog

Pressures of Being Too Busy

Have you ever been so busy that your head is spinning? Does your task list keep growing…as soon as you accomplish one thing, two more are added? Do you work lots of hours and can’t seem to get ahead? Is your work/life balance out of wack? Do you feel stressed? Are you overwhelmed? 

Join the club. Many people (probably most people) feel the same way much of the time. In fact, it’s the way I currently feel. I’ve recently had the privilege of being appointed to a new position at Franciscan University of Steubenville. As such, my weekly meeting schedule has practically doubled overnight. In working to combine several departments, we’re going through a strategic planning process while launching an additional major initiative. Add to that all the work I’ve historically been doing, none of which has gone away.

Sharing the above with a friend recently, he said, “boy…you sound like you’re overwhelmed”. He then sarcastically recommended that I read my own book, Overwhelming Pursuit: Stop Chasing Your Life and Live.

 

Why I’m Not Overwhelmed

In all deference to my friend, I’m not overwhelmed, although the last couple weeks have required many, many additional hours of my time. As opposed to my pre-conversion days, when I was a serious workaholic, I’m not overwhelmed for three specific reasons.

  1. Understanding my “Why” – It’s important to understand your “why”, that is why you’re doing what you’re doing. For the old me, it was all about what I refer to as the 4 Ps, prominence, possessions, pleasure, and people. I had this God sized hole in the center of my chest that I was trying to fill with all of these things that weren’t possibly going to make me happy…but I was pursuing them because of the world’s influence. My “who” was my “do”. My role was my identity.

Today those things mean much, much less to me. My “why”, my purpose is to serve our Lord and serve others, which are the things that bring me peace, joy, and fulfillment. You don’t have to be in ministry to do these things. You do need to understand your “why”

  1. Commitment to Peace over Pace – Back in the day, the pace always outstripped the peace. My work/life balance was always out of wack, with me working 60+ hours per week. Although exhausted by it, I thrived on the pace, topic for another blog. I now like to say, it’s all about the peace, not the pace.

Matthew Kelly, one of my favorite Catholic authors and speakers, likes to say, “you can only say “no” when you have a stronger “yes”. I have a strong “yes”, which includes being committed to peace in my life, not the incredibly high pace I used to live.

  1. Prayer – there is a peace to prayer. It comes with my rote prayers, which I say very slowly, hanging on every word. It also comes in meditating on Scripture. But mostly it comes in what Matthew Kelly calls the “classroom of silence”, where I share my thoughts, feelings, dreams, and challenges with our Lord, then just listen for His voice.

So while at the moment I have a lot on my plate, I know it will pass. And because of my relationship with our Savior, Jesus Christ, I’m not overwhelmed. He’s got the wheel. He’s in control. I’m just along for the ride.

As always, feel free to contact me with questions or comments at [email protected].

May God Bless you on your Path to Peace, Joy, and Fulfillment!!!!

Mark Joseph

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Weekly Blog

Why It’s So Important to Forgive

Are you one to hold a grudge? It doesn’t have to be a major “resentment”. Maybe it’s minor thing that you won’t forgive of someone else? What kind of impact is it having on the other person? On you?

In the Scriptures, Jesus tells us that we need to forgive. One example is the “Our Father”, the only prayer Jesus gave us, where He says, “forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us”. Another is in Matthew 18:22, where in response to Peter asking how often we are to forgive, Jesus says, “I do not say to you even seven times, but even seventy times seven times” There are numerous other examples in Scripture as well.

Why do you think Jesus is so insistent that we forgive others? We get the answer when we refer to another part of Scripture, the Great Commandments, where in Mark 12:29-31 – Jesus said, “The first is this…You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

Jesus knows that we can’t love someone if we resent or lack forgiveness for another. It’s just not possible to do so, to love purely when we don’t have forgiveness in our hearts. And as much as we can’t love someone else, we can’t love God our Father with our whole heart, soul, mind, and strength.

It being one of the most important things Jesus told us, we need to abide by the Great Commandments. To not do so is to not pursue our faith, to not grow in faith, to not have peace, joy, or fulfillment in our lives.

Before Forgiving Others?

Before forgiving others though, we often need to forgive ourselves. That was true for me and to do so I needed to bring someone alongside me. Given the tragedy I experienced in my life, I saw a Christian therapist for a number of years…lots of sessions, and lots of copays. The visual I think about was her facing me with a Crucifix in one hand and a mirror in the other, because we spent every session, all session, talking about how I needed to change and be more like Jesus.

For you it might not need to be a therapist. It could be a good friend, a relative, or mentor. Whoever it is, I’d suggest that it be someone who has experience, is educated, independent, and invested in you being the very best you can be.

In forgiving ourselves, we can come to a place where we understand that others’ issues (their faults, failings, and inadequacies) aren’t to be cast upon us, but owned by them. We understand that when people hurt us it’s most often not with malice, but instead from a place of their own woundedness. As such, they need our forgiveness. They need our love.

Jesus calls us to love one another. In addition to loving His Father, it’s His priority for our lives. Here’s a little secret….it’s only in loving others, loving God our Father, and being a Disciple where we’ll have true peace, joy, and fulfillment in our lives.

As always, feel free to contact me with questions or comments at [email protected].

God Bless you on your Path to Peace, Joy, and Fulfillment!!!

Mark Joseph

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Weekly Blog

One of Jesus’ Biggest Asks

Did you know that central to our faith is being a disciple? Did you further know that central to being a disciple is making other disciples? It seems that most Christians, including Catholics, aren’t aware of this.

Two of the most important things Jesus shared with us in Scripture, that He asked of us,
directed us to do, are the:

  • Great Commandments, Mark 12:29-31 – Jesus said, “The first is this…You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”
  • Great Commission, Matthew 29:19-20 – Jesus said to His disciples, “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.”

Jesus wasn’t making mere suggestions. Both are clear to anyone who wants to listen. Critical to our individual spiritual growth, they are also very important to the health of the Church.

What Does It Mean to be a Disciple?

Being a disciple is living the life taught to us by Jesus Christ. It is both the Great Commandments and the Great Commission. Although in some ways simple, it’s not easy. It’s the journey of a lifetime.

With much having been written about it, one aspect that is often ignored is making disciples. Many, including me for a long time, don’t have an idea of what it means to make a disciple. There are those who don’t care and can’t be bothered by it. Others believe they’re doing it, but when you ask them how, they’re very short on details.

Proven Model

I work for the Conference Office at Franciscan University of Steubenville, where several years ago we became very interested in truly understanding discipleship. Endeavoring to find a model that results in spiritual multiplication (disciples making disciples making disciples) over an extended period of time, we researched over 50 organizations during a 2-year period.

The hard work paid off. We found a model that has worked for over 35 years. Developed by Greg Ogden, it’s detailed in his book, Transforming Discipleship, where he points to the benefits of “micro groups” over one on one discipleship and traditional small groups of 6-10. Time tested and proven, Greg’s model is the only one we found that could meet our criteria.

It Serves Your Needs…Not Just Others

We refer to them as Discipleship Quads, where 4 people (men with men, women with women) meet weekly over the course of a year, both learning and living the behaviors of a disciple. If you’re like most, first hearing that seems daunting. But having spent the last twelve months in a group, I can tell you that it’s one of my favorite parts of the week.

I read a study not long ago that indicates that 49% of adults complain about being lonely. Wow…that’s 1 in 2. With the advent of the smart phone and our lives becoming busier and busier, this statistic has dramatically increased. An intentional part of the Discipleship Quads is the fellowship time. Combined with the review of the week’s content, meaningful friendships are born and true learning of our faith is accomplished, all related to your personal journey.

With each taking his/her turn facilitating the group over the course of the year, it’s easy for those interested to start a new group. Not only for you individually, but think about it for your Parish. If just 2 groups (8 people) started in year #1, that would potentially mean 8 groups/32 people in year #2, with possibly 30+ groups and over 100 people in year #3. What would the impact be on your Parish with 100 engaged, enthused Disciples?

The Best Part

Here’s the best news (other than it being a proven methodology)…it’s 100% free. No gimmicks, no tricks….it’s FREE OF CHARGE. Just go to https://steubenvilleconferences.com/discipleship-quads/. There you’ll get the details of the model, how we’ll support you through the process, and how to get the content. Did I mention that it’s 100% free?

Please feel free to get back to me with questions or comments at [email protected].

God Bless you on your Path to Peace, Joy, and Fulfillment!!!

Mark Joseph

Categories
Weekly Blog

Where’d You Come From?

Did you ever wonder where you came from? Where your roots are? Who your ancestors are or what their lives were like?

My wife and I just spent 10 days in Ireland, visiting towns like Kinsale, Killarney, Dingle, Doolin, Galway, Spiddal, and Ennis. We saw things like the Ring of Kerry, the Dingle Peninsula, and the Cliffs of Moher. Instead of hotels, we stayed in Bed and Breakfasts, mostly out in the country, where the views were second only to the hospitality, including the traditional Irish breakfast.

You’ve heard the expression, “when in Rome….” Well….when in Ireland, we ate more fried food, especially fish and chips, than you can imagine. It’s amazing how good it is when it’s fresh caught fish and hand cut fries. The fish chowder was excellent as well. In addition, the restaurants we went to for dinner, where we had specially prepared fresh catch fish dishes, were wonderful, each more so than the last.

Lastly, although never going to bars back home, we made it a habit to go hear live Irish music at the local pubs on several nights. We became quite fond of Irish coffee, Irish Whiskey included.

     
 

Finding Your Roots

As great as the sites and the food, it was equally enjoyable trying to figure out our roots, tracing them back to parts of Ireland. As it turns out, my wife’s great, great grandmother was a Quinn. My mother’s maiden name is Logan. From what we could determine, the Logans came from Derry. It will be interesting to compare that against what my Aunt Gen found in constructing our family tree years ago.

Many, many of us in the US (and many parts of the world), due to long-time immigration, are now a combination of nationalities. My brothers and I are Lebanese, German, and Hungarian, in addition to being Irish. Our kids can add to that list being English.

While all the above can give us some context, it doesn’t inform us as to who we are.

So we all come from different places, with different foods, cultures, climates, and customs. That said, we have incredible commonalities:

  • While no two of us are identical, our anatomies are consistent, female and male
  • Our basic needs are the same…food, clothing, shelter
  • We all have dreams and desires, talents and gifts, each wired differently than the other

Your Real Identity

What makes us most alike and most unique is not where we are from, but how we were created and who created us. It was God our Father who conceived of us thousands of years ago, making each of us very uniquely and with our own individual gifts and talents. He put each one of us on this earth for a very specific purpose, to do great things. God made us (you) for Greatness!!!

While it’s neat to see where you came from, who your ancestors were, what the culture and customs were like, what’s most important is who you are, what your identity is:

  • You are a child of God, loved unconditionally
  • As exemplified by His Son’s death on the Cross
  • Through Jesus’ resurrection, you are made to live in His glory.

Remember….it’s not where you’re from (although that’s neat to know), but who you are that really matters. You’re a child of God, made for Greatness!!!

Please get to me with questions or comments at [email protected].

God Bless you on your Path to Peace, Joy, and Fulfillment!!!

Mark Joseph