It’s the day after our 2020 election. As you might imagine, I wrote this blog several days ago and if I had to guess, we still don’t know who our president will be for the next four years. Given the division within our country, i.e. the election, COVID, race issues, the riots, hopefully we can start experiencing some healing…God Bless America!!!
In the 2+ years that I’ve been writing these blogs, the most ever opened was “Tom Brady Isn’t Jesus Christ”. My point there was the emptiness of the false gods that so many of us are victim to, whether people, possessions, prominence, or pleasures.
The point is different here. So often, people put so much emphasis on what takes place in our world or our country and the impact it’s going to have on them. It is often looked at as “make or break”, extremely positive or extremely negative. Examples might be climate change, the economy, immigration, or world affairs. The presidential election is a good example, where we look to one candidate or another as our savior, the one to save the world from its woes, to save us individually. Neither Donald Trump nor Joe Biden is Jesus Christ.
Don’t get me wrong; I strongly believe that there’s one political philosophy that makes much more sense for the United States and its citizens…the same philosophy that is more consistent with the teachings of the Church. That said, I don’t see either presidential candidate as the “be all and end all”, nor either political philosophy. That’s because I know my “why” and I know my “who”. I know there’s something greater!!!
Let’s start with the latter first. I know that I’m a beloved child of God, made in His image and likeness, made by Him with special talents, designed for a specific purpose. I know joy and fulfillment, while living the path to peace, which is surrender, gratitude, humility, and love.
My “why” is straight forward, as identified in the Great Commandments and Great Commission, Matthew 22:37-39 and Matthew 28:19-20, respectively. Paraphrasing, my “why”, like yours’, is to love God, love my neighbor, and to share the good news of the Gospel.
Here’s the thing…while our country, our world has limits (they will come to an end), you and I are eternal beings. By embracing our “who” and “why”, not only do we have the opportunity to change lives, but we can change eternity. There’s something much greater!!!
As I’ve stated in previous posts, you don’t have to be in ministry to do ministry. You don’t have to work for the Church to realize your “who” and “why”. Here’s two of many things I’ve come to know as very true:
Authentically embracing your “who” and your “why” is the only Path to Peace, Joy, and Fulfillment
If each of us as individuals truly are the best we can be (Great Commandments and Great Commission), the world is going to be just fine
Politics is important. Elections have an impact. But there’s something greater…and it all starts with you!!!
Happy to help you on your journey, including any of the above. Please feel free to reach out to me at Mark@MarkJosephMinistries.com, with questions, comments, concerns, challenges or prayer requests.
God Bless you on your Path to Peace, Joy, and Fulfillment!!!
Related to how you might define living a great life, what are the three characteristics that would be most important to you? Assuming that you’re a reader of my book, Overwhelming Pursuit: Stop Chasing Your Life and Live, my blog, or website you won’t be surprised when I say that for me they include:
Peace
Joy
Fulfillment
Those would be my big three. Why so? Let’s look at each based on Thesaurus.com.
Peace
Antonyms
Disagreement
Hate
Discord
Agitation
Disharmony
Distress
Fighting
Frustration
Worry
Synonyms
Accord
Friendship
Love
Reconciliation
Unity
Joy
Antonyms
Depression
Misery
Sadness
Sorrow
Unhappiness
Discouragement
Synonyms
Amusement
Bliss
Charm
Cheer
Comfort
Delight
Elation
Humor
Satisfaction
Wonder
Fulfillment
Antonyms
Dissatisfaction
Failure
Forfeit
Disappointment
Frustration
Unfulfillment
Synonyms
Achievement
Attainment
Contentment
Gratification
Perfection
Realization
I think it’s that simple. Do you want Peace, Joy, and Fulfillment as defined by the above synonyms or the opposite as indicated by the antonyms?
I know what I want and I know how to get it…which I share in my book, my blog, and on my website. If you want more information on how to get there, please contact me at Mark@MarkJosephMinistries.com. Please also feel free to send me your comments, questions, concerns, challenges, or prayer requests.
God Bless you on your Path to Peace, Joy, and Fulfillment!!!
In last Wednesday’s blog, I noted about my weekly message…“Although topics are varied, I typically write about what is on my heart and mind for that week, often related to current events, always tied back to the faith and our loving God”. In praying this morning, thinking about what’s been occurring in our country, the Lord put the word “integrity” on my heart.
Dictionary.com defines integrity as adherence to moral and ethical principles; soundness of moral character; honesty; the state of being whole, entire, or undiminished; a sound, unimpaired, or perfect condition.
Doing a search for a Catholic definition of integrity, I found the following on CatholicCulture.com. Integrity is honesty or trustworthiness. The quality of being virtuous. Wholeness of character without duplicity or internal conflict of interests.
I assume that everyone agrees, whether a believer or not, significantly committed to our faith or not, that integrity is a good thing. No one wants to be in relationship with a habitual liar or someone of bad character. Liars don’t even want to be with other liars (unless they are complicit in the same lie) because they can’t trust one another.
Photo by Andrew Neel from Pexels
My Past Struggle with Integrity
I don’t know about you, but there were times in my life, more than I’d like to recall, where I didn’t act with integrity. I wasn’t virtuous or of good character. I wasn’t truthful, lying to others and if I’m truthful (no pun intended) lying to myself. Some of those instances were almost accidental while others were premeditated, requiring planning and intent. It was at a time in my life when it was all about me, myself, and I. It pains me to say that focus on me and my desires, caused me to act with malice at times, hurting others along the way. Reflecting, I am deeply saddened and sorry for my actions.
I can also recount times when dealing with others who had no integrity, at least in the moment or the circumstance. Like me, I’m sure some of it was accidental while at other times it was the norm. I recall not only being hurt, but losing trust. Without integrity, without truth, we can’t function. Life doesn’t work.
Broader Role of Integrity
Although I have very strong political views, those that (like you) I believe are consistent with my faith, I’ve never published a single word on politics. I’ve never expressed my political views or affiliation on this platform…because I’ve not wanted politics to get in the way of what I consider to be an incredibly important message…that is the love of Jesus Christ.
It’s not my intent to become political here either. That said, with all that’s going on in our country, i.e. COVID-19, continued shutdowns, issues related to kids going back to school, racial divide, numerous ongoing riots, immigration, economic issues, Russia, China, mail-in voting, an upcoming presidential election, and the resulting political division…..truth matters. Integrity matters. It really does.
Without truth, we can’t trust. Without integrity, there is no moral character. No moral compass. As I indicated two weeks ago, Satan’s primary strategies are division, deception, diversion, and discouragement. Lack of integrity (or truth) is just another way of saying “deception” and “diversion”. And as quoted from Matthew 12:25 in that August 26th blog, “a house divided against itself will not stand”. Satan loves dividing us.
It’s not my objective here to tell you how to vote. I do suggest being very discerning with what you believe. The dis-information that we have in our society today, the lack of truth and integrity that exists, is literally sinful, and I don’t say that lightly.
Knowing that I’m a beloved child of Christ (that won’t sound strange if you’re a frequent reader of this blog), I believe that all the answers to life (as you’ve heard me say before) are offered to us by the Church and in Scripture. When it comes to truth and integrity, I would suggest we look to our Savior, Jesus Christ, in addition to Church teachings and Scripture. If we are the Christians that we’re called to be, our world view and our lives will reflect all three.
Please feel free to send me a note at Mark@MarkJosephMinistries.com pertaining to your comments, questions, concerns, needs, or prayer requests.
God Bless you on your Path to Peace, Joy, and Fulfillment!!!
This is the 11th of our 14-week program, where we provide Lesson #11, The Path to Peace. Some questions to consider as we kick this off:
Do you have a sense of peace in your life?
In reflecting on this program to date, what’s stealing your peace?
Who’s stealing your peace?
When you boil it down, my thesis (sounds so official…ha, ha) is that being overwhelmed doesn’t allow us to experience the peace, joy, or fulfillment that God intended for us. I’ve shared the life lessons that have allowed me to go from there to here….by God’s grace.
My experience indicates that a full life, an impactful life, the life all of us really yearn for, includes all three…peace, joy, and fulfillment. That said, it all starts with peace.
Several years ago, in a moment of unconscious competence (they ring as true today as they did then), I defined the Path to Peace as Surrender, Gratitude, Humility, and Love. Although the sequence isn’t absolute, my experience would indicate that there’s something to it. Let’s explore each individually.
1) Surrender First, we cannot control life, no matter how much we try. Many might think that isn’t true. With a good plan and solid people around you, it’s possible to control things. Sure, when it comes to planned events, we have a certain amount of control, as long as we allow for contingencies, but even then, things don’t always go perfectly. In fact, most of life is beyond our control. Other people and their choices and behavior are beyond our control. Tragic events, disease, accidents — these things are all way outside the scope of our control.
Second, we have God, who loves us more than we can imagine, who wants to see us happy, who designed us for a specific purpose, uniquely and individually, who knows best for us — the God who made us for greatness.
So why not surrender to the God of the universe, who is all-powerful, almighty, and all-loving? Instead of conceiving of something on my own, relying on myself to get it done, and then facing the consequences alone, I can choose to follow God’s will, discerning what He wants for my life and particular situations, and relying on Him for whatever happens. I use my unique and God-given gifts to do my very best, leaving everything up to Him and understanding that everything in life is part of His grand plan. As long as I know his love, it just doesn’t matter what others think. All of this takes the pressure off of me…..a big win!!!
2) Gratitude Be thankful. As important, believe that everything happens for a reason, that there are no coincidences in life. It’s true. Everything is part of God’s grand plan. So, live in a place of gratitude; be grateful for everything that happens, even the crises you experience.
God wants only the very best for us. We can trust that absolutely, regardless of life’s obstacles and challenges. Surrender teaches us to let go of the need to have things our way. Gratitude allows us to look past any short-term pain and be grateful for what God wants to do with it for our good.
Gratitude isn’t just good for the soul, it’s good for the body, too. Experts have indicated the benefits to living a life of gratitude, including being happier, healthier, more optimistic, more spiritual, a better friend, a better boss, etc. A true “attitude of gratitude” is one that allows us to see the hand of God in all things and trust that everything will turn out for our best.
3) Humility Humility is the opposite of ego, which we previously defined as our false self, the identity that we create that is often very far from the truth of who we are. The truly humble person lives from the truth of who he is and can step back from the chaos of trying to prove himself to others.
A humble person has a sense of self-worth, believes in himself, even loves himself, and doesn’t live in fear. Humility has much to do with self-love. This is because humility helps us know exactly who we are, with all of our weaknesses, yes, and even more with all of our strengths given to us by God. Those who have a healthy self-love, who are humble, have no need to look down on anyone, nor do they look up to anyone except Jesus Christ. We were all created by the same God, with the same perfection, in his image and likeness. To God, we are all “10s”.
A humble person is genuinely happy for others in their successes. He is accepting of others’ ideas and thoughts (accepting doesn’t mean always agreeing), always very willing to engage in dialogue and even friendly debate. The humble person doesn’t always have to be right, doesn’t always have to be in control, doesn’t always have to win. Humility allows us to accept others for who they are, rather than judging them or trying to change them.
Humility means accepting and loving others unconditionally. This does not mean we shouldn’t discern right from wrong, but we must never condemn others. Being humble is understanding that it is only in God working through us that we can perform or achieve anything worthwhile. It is his doing, not ours.
BTW, this isn’t easy stuff. On this journey now for a while, my biggest challenge is humility. It’s that old sin of “pride” that keeps creeping up on me. We’re all a work in process.
4) Love The final step (and the ultimate goal of this journey) is love. Above all else, we are called to love. Jesus tells us to love our neighbors as ourselves, second only to loving God with our whole heart, mind, soul, and strength. We need to love. When we fail to love, we leave those around us empty, and we are empty, too. Yet we certainly can’t love others if we can’t accept them, if we’re always competing with them or judging them. We can’t love them if we always have to be right or always have to be on top.
Without relationships, life is meaningless. True relationship is impossible without love. To love, we need to be vulnerable; we need to trust; we need to care. Having gratitude for the people in our lives is vital to loving them. And gratitude brings joy, which is also essential to love.
As I have learned since my conversion, you cannot truly love others unless you first love yourself. It can be a slow journey, but practicing surrender, gratitude, and humility strengthens and confirms us in who we are, which opens us up to loving ourselves and others.
Suggested Actions This blog has been longer than most in this series. As such, let’s wait till this Friday’s video, where I’ll share suggested actions you can take to get on and stay on the Path to Peace. Please join us next Wednesday for Week #12 when we talk about Finding Your Purpose. As always, please feel free to get to me with questions, comments, or concerns at Mark@MarkJosephMinistries.com.
God Bless you on your Path to Peace, Joy, and Fulfillment!!!
Mark Joseph
Week #1 – Being Overwhelmed Week #2 – Earning the love of others Week #3 – Lack of self-love Week #4 – Fear Week #5 – False gods, False happiness Week #6 – Life’s Tragedies Week #7 – Wounds, Resentments
Week #8 – Discovering God’s Love Week #9 – Forgiveness and healing Week #10 – Becoming the best Possible You Week #11 – Path to Peace Week #12 – Finding your Purpose Week #13 – You were made for Greatness Week #14 – True Peace, Joy, and Fulfillment
