2020 has been a challenging year for all of us. In the midst of the uncertainty and chaos of this year, there are still good lessons we can learn from our experience. Today, I reflect on 5 things that I have learned this year.

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“If we don't confront evil with the power of the Gospel, then we're in big trouble."

What’s going to happen in the fall? Will kids be in school? What will religious education and sacramental prep look like? In this episode, I discuss the importance of remembering our goal of reaching heaven as we plan for uncertain times in the fall.

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Our ultimate goal is to become who God has created us to be and to go to heaven, and this goal cannot be thwarted by a pandemic.

Navigating social media with love is a challenge we all face today. Looking at the lives of the saints and Jesus himself, Colin and Aimee MacIver discuss why cancel culture is incompatible with the Gospel and how to use social media in pursuit of holiness.

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“Our goal is not just to share truth but ultimately to love each other”

Near a spot where Colin takes his son fishing, there is graffiti on the side of a building. There was a new one however, which caught his eye. "Seen everything but Christ."

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Racism is present in our nation, and there is tension between races and classes. There is a danger of the center not holding politically. When Walker Percy wrote, "the center did not hold," in Love in the Ruins, he wasn't speaking just politically, but the interior state of the person.

In today's podcast, Colin gives some pointers on where we can find our center.

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The center is only found in Jesus Christ's grace and mercy. Our minds and hearts must be fixed on him. He is the only one who will save us._

Today, Colin shares how the basics of conversation from his son’s perspective, sharing good news and asking good questions, are the basics to evangelization.

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This week, we pause to meditate on our identity, purpose, and desires.

Identity: We are the children of God. It’s who we are at the center of who we are. Ask God, who am I?

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When we act poorly, it’s often because we’ve forgotten who we essentially are; children of God.

There’s likely going to be two types of people who will need to be reached once the churches reopen. Those who have become used to not going to Mass and won’t come back to church once the doors reopen. Then there’s some who have been doing some soul searching during quarantine.

For the former, we will have to work pretty hard to get them back into the pews because they have found they are just fine without Jesus and church. The latter are more spiritually sensitive than before quarantine. They will be looking for churches, looking for God for clarity, purpose, and hope. They will be right there when the doors open again, hungry and thirsty for the Word. This means there will be new faces to welcome and opportunities to evangelize.

Either way, we need to preach the gospel with such clarity and conviction that it cuts to the heart and brings people back to Jesus.

If the world is a ship, then right now it’s taking in water. We’re pulled apart right now, keeping in touch through virtual means, but we must acknowledge that we cannot maintain a digital existence in perpetuity. This cannot be the new normal.

As a Church, we need to be able to return to the sacraments at some point. It’s wonderful that we’re able to connect online right now, but it’s not something we can continue with forever.

This is not where we ought to be, but it’s where we are. Let’s offer up our suffering, and have hope in being reunited with each other, and with the sacraments.

Colossians 1:24 indicates that Jesus left some things undone, not in himself, but in each of us. St. Paul says, ““I am now rejoicing in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am completing what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church.”

Another way of saying it is that God invites us to participate in the salvific action of Jesus through our own suffering. Jesus forever transformed the meaning of suffering through his passion. No longer is suffering meaningless pain, but it can be offered up and joined to the work of Christ to intercede for the good of others. This is why we can rejoice in our sufferings.

As we enter into yet another week of quarantine and separation, we can unite our suffering to the cross of Christ.

Check out my talk with Fr. Mike on Baptism and Belonging to the Family of God.