Category: Weekly Blog

Are you a “glass half full” or “glass half empty” person? Are you more apt to see the positive in things or the negative? Are you easily deflated, brought down by what happens around you? Or even by what’s going on in the world? Do external factors control your mood or does your attitude, hopefully positive, drive your reality?

Related to that last question, I used to allow external factors, including people, control my mood (and behavior). If a project wasn’t going well or I failed at doing something (even when just a self-imposed interim goal), it would impact me negatively. The same would be true if I had a challenging interaction with someone; or if I felt I wasn’t liked or respected. The national news would even bring me down.

Path to Peace

Imitation being the purest form of flattery, I joke that I have very few original thoughts, instead often citing what I hear and read from others. As an exception to that, several years ago I began defining the Path to Peace as:

• Surrender
• Gratitude
• Humility
• Love

I don’t know how I came up with it, but it spoke to me then (8+ years ago), as it does now. Chapter 12 in my book is titled, Pursuing the Path to Peace. Although I think that there is a sequence to the four (possibly subject of another blog) as related to our spiritual journeys, each is also independent of the others.

Attitude of Gratitude

Specific to this blog, Gratitude has become very important to me. Central to gratitude is my understanding that EVERYTHING happens according to God’s grand plan, for a reason; not an accident, nor a coincidence.

I say the above, even with having suffered through significant tragedy in my life. I say so because I know that I wouldn’t be who I am (nor would you) today without every single one of those occurrences in my life, the good and the bad. I also know that given God’s great love for me, He has designed me with a specific purpose, which can only be achieved by me using my unique and God-given gifts….again, according to His (God’s) grand plan.

Given the above and having come to this place on my faith walk, I now (almost always) see the glass as half full. Not always easy, I recognize that all this happens for a reason, as a part of God’s grand plan.

Need to be Intentional

Like most things in life, the above didn’t just happen. It took intentionality on my part. I made “gratitude” a regular part of my prayer life, reflecting on and thanking God daily for all the things in my life, good and bad. Having done it for so long, it’s become habit. Also included as part of my daily routine is the prayer that I blogged about last week, found here, which really speaks to gratitude.

An additional, intentional thing you could do for “gratitude” is to journal about it. Whether it be an actual prayer journal, your day planner, or some scrap paper, a very good process to go through is the following:

1. Write down the good things that took place in the last day or last week.
2. Write down the more challenging things as well.
3. Reflect on the lessons learned from each, thanking God for the good and discerning the meaning of the bad.
4. Do the above, believing in God’s unconditional love for you

The above works. Try it. If you have any challenges with the above, or questions/comments otherwise, please reach out to me at [email protected].

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

Mark Joseph

Do you spend time in prayer? Do you do it on a regular basis? Why do you pray? Is it for you? Is it for God? Is it helpful? Will you continue doing it?

For a long time, I did not pray regularly, especially prior to my conversion. Then I became aware of the merits of prayer, the benefit it brought to my life, in not only providing me direction, but bringing me peace.

I posted a blog, Prayer that Works, on July 4, 2018, that explains a prayer process that has worked for me over a long period of time. It can be found here.

For me, prayer comes in many forms and at many times throughout my day and the week. It wasn’t always that way, but the more I’ve done it, the more value I’ve found in it. Part of my prayer life is the rote prayers I learned when I was young (Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be), in addition to a couple others, one of which I wrote in 2009. It really speaks to my spirituality, my journey, and my message. I wanted to share it with you today.

Thank you God the Father; Thank you Jesus!!!

Dear Jesus Christ, Son of the Father, thank you for dying that torturous death on the cross for each one of us, including me. Thank you for rising from the dead so that I can live in Your Glory.

God the Father, thank you for loving me enough to give me Your only begotten Son.

Lord, thank you for my journey, every step along the way…the good, the great, the wonderful, the bad, the terrible, the ugly. I am where I am because it is where You want me to be. I am who I am because it’s who You are making me to be. I trust in You Lord, to make me and shape me for Your Glory.

Thank you for loving me, blessing me, showing me Your Will, showering me with Your Grace, and granting me Your Peace, which can only come from being in a place of…

• Surrender
• Gratitude
• Humility
• Love

Lord Jesus, help me to understand and internalize your Unconditional Love and Forgiveness, fully living these gifts….

So that with Holy Spirit Boldness, using my God-given gifts, not caring what anyone on this earth thinks of me…I can be all that You call me to be in serving You.

Dear Lord, help me to always see Christ in All and be Christ to All, living Your Will, helping others become the best versions of themselves, which is True Love…Christ’s Love. 

Please give me the strength and courage to evangelize my Faith, living the Gospel, sharing the Gospel, using words when necessary and always.

When done for the Glory of God, the unimaginable is achievable.

For all those on Your Journey, please grant us peace. For all those seeking, help us find. And for all those lost, help us see.

I ask this blessing for all of us on this great earth, including my family, friends (including you), and myself.

I ask this in the name of Your Son, Jesus Christ. Amen.

As always, feel free to comment to me at [email protected].

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

Mark Joseph

When’s the last time you had a disagreement with someone? An argument? Or maybe you were really challenged by what someone did or said, but kept it to yourself rather than creating an issue?

Conflict is a part of life…for all of us. No matter who you are or what you do, you aren’t always going to agree with everyone and everything. Given your experiences, thoughts, and feelings, your approach is sometimes going to be different than others’. The question isn’t whether they’ll be conflict, but how you handle it.

Ego’s Role in Conflict

In my past life, I had a very strong ego, which stands for “edge God out”. At the same time, I suffered from low self-worth (lack of self-esteem, self-love). As a result and in order to feel affirmed, I always needed to be right…it was my way or the highway. Things are different now:

• Having internalized God’s unconditional love and knowing who I am in Christ, I no longer always have to be right or win.
  
• I can accept and even embrace the differences between me and others.
  
  

All of the above goes to conflict in two respects. First, a lot less bothers me than before. I don’t have to be right. Others don’t have to agree with me. I understand that my opinions can be different than theirs’ and that none of us are bad people as a result (I’m not suggesting that there’s not right and wrong; truth does matter). With that, I don’t need their affirmation in the form of their agreement…it’s not going to change my day, nor the way I think about myself or them.

To Disagree Without Being Disagreeable

The second point relates to how we handle conflict. We’ve all heard that we can disagree without being disagreeable. While sounding simple, it’s not always easy. If comfortable with “self”, we can express ourselves with a lot less emotion. I’ve found that the best way to have a tough discussion is to start off by saying something like (individually or in sequence):

• “I have something that I want to share with you that’s been on my heart.”
• “Given how I think you feel about it, it’s not easy bringing it to your attention.”
• “I’ve really been wrestling with how to do it, concerned about your reaction.”
• “Know how much I care for you, which is why I feel a need to speak up.”
• “I hope that you’ll take it as intended, which is charitably.”
• “Our friendship is very important to me.”

Another thing that is important is tone. Stating the obvious, you don’t want to be yelling. I often times raise my voice when I get excited about something. As such, people perceive that I’m mad because they think I’m yelling. I’m now aware of this and when I sense it’s taking place, I proactively advise others that I’m just excited, not mad. Or I might even say it in advance of beginning the discussion.

The Measure of How You Feel About You

Being able to handle conflict in a healthy way, as indicated above, is the measure of a good relationship. It’s also a measure of how you feel about you. If you are good at conflict, then you probably have little ego and a healthy perception of self. If conflict is an issue, at least part of the problem may be not understanding God’s unconditional love for you. Happy to chat with you about that.

As always, feel free to comment to me at [email protected].

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

Mark Joseph

In my book, Overwhelming Pursuit: Stop Chasing Your Life and Live, published this past summer by Our Sunday Visitor, I provide the process that the Lord shared with me in going from being overwhelmed to fulfilled.

Feedback and Input

Having received very positive feedback on the book, I’m considering creating a workbook to further help people work through the issues specific to their situations. In addition, I’m also strongly considering launching a very affordable online course to further enhance the experience.

As part of my evaluation and discernment of both (workbook and course), I’d very much love to receive your feedback and input, which can come in one of two ways:

1. Have a phone conversation with me – you’d need to provide me with your phone number by email with a preferred date/time; our discussion would take no more than 15-20 minutes.
2. Answer some questions via email; I would send questions and you could respond at your convenience.

Perks For You!

Although #1 above is my preference, either would be greatly appreciated. For anyone willing to help, I’ll provide the following PERKS:

• Nice copy of Prayer that I wrote, that speaks to the spirituality and journey represented in my book and blogs (will be sent to you immediately).
• 15% discount off course upon launch (should you be interested…no pressure).
• Special VIP offerings associated with the course launch.

My Message

To re-familiarize you with my message…it’s my lived experience that we grow up believing that we have to earn the love of others, i.e. conditional love (the better we perform, the more love we perceive we receive), which leads to lack of self-love and fear…all overwhelming and preventing us from:

• Being, doing, and trying all that we’re called to.
• Using our God-given gifts.
• Meeting our full potential.

Born along the way are tragedies (all of us experience them), hurts, and wounds that often result in resentments.

We often end up pursuing things that can’t possibly make us happy….I refer to them as the 4Ps…Prominence, Possessions, Pleasure, and (using of) People.

The Path the Lord Put Me On

Meeting with significant tragedy in my own life, the Lord took me on a path that included:

• Conversion
• Healing
• Formation

Through all of this, I not only learned (and have detailed in my book) how to live a life of Peace, Joy, and Fulfillment, but that I (and you) am made for Greatness!!!

Please Help…

So given the above, please let me know if you’re willing. I really need your input and feedback. To indicate your interest in helping, please email me at [email protected], with either option (#1 or 2) from the above. I’d appreciate it greatly.

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

Mark Joseph