Tag: Mark Joseph

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What Satan Doesn’t Want You to Know

You were made for Greatness; God made you for Greatness. Three of many, many examples from Scripture include:

  • Jeremiah 1:5 – “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you. And before you went forth from the womb, I sanctified you. And I made you a prophet to the nations”.
  • Jeremiah 29:11 – For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future”.
  • John 10:10 – Jesus said, “I have come so that they may have life, and have it more abundantly”.

Did you know that you were made for greatness? Have you ever heard (or read) it before…and if so, was it ever detailed for you? Do you know what greatness means for you? Do you know how to achieve it? Do you know the process for identifying it in yourself and for your life?

Satan’s Plan for Your Life

Or like most, is it Satan’s plan for your life that you have a clearer understanding of, that of the secular world, which would have you believe that your greatness can be found in what I refer to as the 4 Ps:

  • Prominence
  • Possessions
  • Pleasure
  • People (using them, not authentic relationship)

Matthew Kelly, who I’ve noted before as one of my favorite Catholic authors and speakers, has a line which I love repeating. It goes something like…

You can never have too much of what you really don’t need.

Think about that in your life. Take it to prayer (seriously). If we’re honest, none of the 4 Ps make us happy. None of them fulfill us.

Satan definitely wants you to believe in the 4 Ps, striving to achieve them at all costs. What he doesn’t want you to know (or believe in) is the truth below…because if you do, he won’t be able to succeed in his primary strategies of division, deceit, and destruction.

God’s Plan for Your Life

Here’s the truth. God loves you more than you’ll ever know, no matter what you’ve ever done. Think about that in your life. Take it to prayer (seriously). He conceived of YOU thousands and thousands of years ago…

  • Making you with a very specific purpose
  • With special gifts and talents
  • He doesn’t make junk; He doesn’t make mistakes – YOU’RE a “10”
  • He made you in His image and likeness
  • God made you according to His grand plan, individually and as part of all of humanity
  • God wants you to be happy; He wants you to be fulfilled
  • God made you for GREATNESS!!!

Greatness can only be achieved in realizing and living your God-given purpose, coupled with using (maximizing) your God-given gifts and talents. You see…you weren’t a mistake; you weren’t an accident, nor any kind of coincidence. You were very intentionally conceived of thousands of years ago, put on this earth for a specific reason, part of God’s grand plan. And participating in that plan is the ONLY way for you to have a life of Peace, Joy, and Fulfillment.

So say “yes” to Jesus. Engage, internalize, and abide in Christ’s love. Your life will never be the same. Satan will have lost. And you will have won, knowing the love of Jesus Christ and living the Will of God.

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

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

Mark Joseph

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Weekly Blog

We Only Have One Savior

Do you ever feel like it all relies on you? You feel all this pressure, believing that if you don’t perform that it’s not going to get done? That without your efforts alone, failure is right around the corner. All is doomed. It’s you or nothing. 

I know that in my past, prior to me experiencing conversion and being on this spiritual journey, I felt like that most of the time. It was especially true for my business life, but to be honest it’s the feeling I had in other aspects of my life too. Unknowingly, I was playing the “savior”. 

Having matured in my faith and having a greater reliance on God, I thought that I had escaped the above. Then recently, through some “spiritual coaching”, I discovered the opposite…I’m still playing the savior. Maybe not in the same way as before, but my behavior would indicate that I still believe it’s all up to me. 

Some things from my notes from that coaching:

  • I need to work at a pace that is healthy and trusting in God, so I can stay in His peace.
  • I need to surrender it all to Him and stop playing savior; it’s more than I can carry.
  • Intercessory prayer is more important than human effort; it’s only God who can change hearts. 
  • The primary agent is God; need to turn all over to Him.
  • Need to say/pray, “Lord, I’m trusting in You”. 
  • There’s a difference between doing something “with” the Lord and “for” the Lord. He wants to work with us. 
  • If it’s going to be saved, it will be by God and not me. 

In a recent blog I wrote, “pray as though everything depends on God; act (work) as though everything depends on you”…often attributed to St. Ignatius and St. Augustine. I like this quote because I think it speaks to the reality of our lives as Christians. Having made us very uniquely and perfectly, God calls on us to use our God given gifts to the best of our ability…but then leave the rest to Him. 

Photo by Alicia Quan on Unsplash

Doing the above is surrender, which we’re reminded of in one of the first prayers we learn, the Our Father, “Thy will be done”. I think that’s my hang-up here. There’s a big difference between surrender and SURRENDER…in all we do. I’ve been talking about all of this for several years now. Truly living it is another thing. Simple, it’s certainly not easy. 

I’ve said before that surrender first requires absolute trust, knowing that God loves me unconditionally, that Jesus would have still died that same torturous death if it were only me on this earth. God made me with unique gifts and talents and put me on this earth for a specific purpose, all according to His grand plan, individually and as part of all of humanity. He wants me to be happy and fulfilled. Even with life’s challenges, God’s given me the ability to live in peace and joy. Lastly, the Holy Spirit lives within me. 

These things are true for all of us. And it’s only in understanding and internalizing them as truth that we can come to this place of surrender. I think I have when it comes to those things that require small “s” surrender. But those BIG “S” SURRENDER things. They’re something different. 

Photo by Luis Quintero on Unsplash

Humility is a part of it, understanding that it’s not really us doing the work, but Him working through us. Connecting it to gratitude, we’re then free to not feel the pressure of the outcome, but leave that instead to God…knowing that all happens for a reason, according to His grand plan.  

We only have one Savior, that’s Jesus Christ. It’s not me and it’s not you. Jesus is our Lord and Savior. I pray that I continue to grow in faith, becoming holier, and living a life of surrender, gratitude, humility, and love. It’s a journey for all of us. I pray you do the same. 

As always, please email me at [email protected] with questions, concerns, comments, or prayer requests. 

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

Remember…God made you for Greatness!!!

Mark Joseph

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Weekly Blog

The Dysfunction of Today’s Communication

There are lots of ways people disappoint us. Family. Friends. Casual encounters. We’re human. We’re all sinners. So, the fact that we disappoint one another, in various ways, isn’t a surprise. 

What I’m referring to in this post, that is so disappointing, is lack of response, primarily related to text messages and emails. I’m no longer surprised or amazed that it occurs. It’s now common place, to be expected. Please note…I’m not talking about people (y’all) responding to blog posts like this one. I’m referring to one on one communications. 

I’m not the only one who’s noticed this. In doing an internet search, there are plenty of articles on the subject. People either don’t respond…which is the most frequent issue, or the response is delayed. What I couldn’t find on the internet (I’m sure I just need to search more) is the real reason or the impact. 

It Would Seem Being Too Busy Isn’t Valid

As a slight aside, at one time I believed that what I was experiencing in life was unique to me. As I’ve progressed, engaging with many on the same journey, I know that we’re all experiencing very similar things, possibly characterized differently. As such, I now know if I’m feeling it, if I’m experiencing it, chances are most others are too. 

One of the reasons pointed to is how busy people are. With the previous paragraph as context, I believe I am representative of most in relation to how busy I am or not. I would assume my inboxes, both work and personal, are similar to others. I would think my text traffic is comparable to most my age. 

I respond…really to all my emails and texts. For me not to do so would be an oversight…which I typically catch within a short period of time. Being as busy as others (I think), I seem to have time to respond. BTW, I’m not suggesting I’m perfect. I make plenty of mistakes with plenty of things. 

Photo by Yan Krukov from Pexels

How Would You Feel?

Here’s the other side of the coin…how does it make people feel to not get a response. Ignored, forgotten, unimportant, not a priority? Whether we want to acknowledge them or not, we know none of these things are positives. I’d suggest they add to the statistics for the societal ills going in the wrong direction in our world, i.e. depression, isolation, anxiety, addiction, suicide, etc. 

It would seem people experiencing the impact of not being responded to doesn’t seem to positively impact response to others. Does anyone else find that interesting? 

This may seem like a silly example to you. Imagine sitting at a table with someone. You say something to them, transactional or possibly with detail and depth, maybe even emotional. After, the person sitting across from you doesn’t respond. He or she just sits there, possibly not even looking at you. You wait for a response…and none is forthcoming. What would that imply about that person? Would that behavior be acceptable? Would you be eager to re-engage with that person? 

What Should We Do? 

Maybe I’m just wining. Maybe it doesn’t matter. Or does it? To me, it’s a continuation of the downhill spiral that we’ve been on. I’ve come to say the more connected we are (social media, apps, text, email), the more isolation we experience. I’d argue isolation isn’t good. Nor are its impacts. 

We’re not meant to go through life alone. We are made for community, for friendship, authentic relationship. The second part of the Great Commandments is, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Mark 12:31). Second to loving God, we have no greater call. 

I’d suggest the way we treat one another, whether in person or online, is important. I hope the above prompts some thought. When someone sends a note, he or she has taken the time and expended the effort to do so. That person is believing he/she would receive a response…or in most cases wouldn’t have sent the note. As Jesus told us, “love your neighbor as yourself”. More people doing so (responding) would make this a better world. Amen!!!

As always, please contact me with questions, comments, concerns, challenges, or prayer requests at [email protected]. 

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

Remember…God made you for Greatness!!!

Mark Joseph

Categories
Weekly Blog

What’s Your Lenten Plan? 

How do you spend Lent? What are the things you do or don’t do, that are different from other times of the year? Why do you do such things? What impact do they have? Could this Lent be different…maybe better? 

Lent comes every year, beginning on Ash Wednesday (which is today) and lasting 40 days to Holy Thursday. For many people, including Catholics, Lent is ignored. For others, I think Lent is about the 1-2 things they give up. It was for me for years, to varying degrees of success. Back then, I don’t know that I fully got it, the meaning of Lent. 

According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, Lent is a time during which “the Church unites herself to the mystery of Jesus in the desert.” As per the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), it’s a season of prayer, almsgiving, and fasting, in preparation to celebrate the Lord’s Resurrection at Easter. The USCCB goes on to say we are called to a true inner conversion of heart as we seek to follow Christ’s will more faithfully. 

Given my journey and believe me I don’t have it all figured out, the primary thing is improving in what we’re already doing. Take prayer…how do I do it more and do it better? Like everything I’ll share here, what is the next thing you can be doing to enhance your spiritual life? If you spend no time in prayer each day, try 5 minutes. If you spend 10 minutes, how about 15? You get the point. Pick the stretch goal for you and do it daily. 

You could choose additional ways to pray or extend the time you do each form of prayer. Examples are rote prayer, reading Scripture, quiet time with our Lord. Should you desire, I have plenty of prayer resources I can pass along to you. 

I’ve fasted periodically, really beginning to do it more this past year. Fasting means different things to different people and health issues can impact what you do. I just heard an incredibly inspiring talk on fasting, where the book, Fasting, was suggested…here’s a link. Do an internet search to find additional information. Again, how can you take what you’ve been doing, no matter how much or little, to the next level? That’s my goal this lent. 

Almsgiving is the giving of one’s time, money, and possessions to those who are less fortunate. Again, what have you done in the past that you can enhance this Lent? 

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I’d like to close by referring to the USCCB from above, where it says related to Lent, “we are called to a true inner conversion of heart as we seek to follow Christ’s will more faithfully”. 

Prayer, fasting, and almsgiving…all of these spiritual practices are designed to lead us into a deeper relationship with Jesus, making us more holy, and providing us with the only path to peace, joy, and fulfillment. 

Some quotes to ponder as we enter this Lenten season: 

  • “God never tires of forgiving us; we are the ones who tire of seeking his mercy” – Pope Francis
  • “Nothing great is ever achieved without much enduring” – St.
  • “Apart from the cross, there is no other ladder by which we may go to heaven” – St. Rose of Lima
  • “Unless there is Good Friday in your life, there can be no Easter Sunday” – Blessed Fulton J. Sheen

As always, please email me at [email protected] with questions, concerns, comments, or prayer requests. 

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

Remember…God made you for Greatness!!!

Mark Joseph