God reveals His life to us as He brings us to share in this life. 

Faith 

The Sacrament of Baptism marks our entrance into the inner life of the Trinity, and by grace, God shares His life with us (CCC 1997). Since the foundation of the world, we were destined to live in this relationship and, in Him, find our happiness (Eph. 1:4-5).   

Sometimes we can make a simple truth complicated. The lives of the saints or those individuals who lived in friendship with God show us the way. Pope Benedict XVI sums it up in this line from his book Salt of the Earth: “What we really need are people who are inwardly seized by Christianity, who experience it as joy and hope, who have thus become lovers, and these we call saints.”    

During the week, ask yourself this question – Does Christianity inwardly seize me?

Spot the Virtue   

It can be easy to confuse perseverance and industriousness, as they can look the same. However, industriousness differs in that it relates to a diligent, conscientious work ethic. The industrious person will complete a task from start to finish, setting small goals to ensure it gets completed. On the other hand, perseverance will enable them to stick to difficult tasks.  

When given a job, do you start immediately on it or take time getting around to it? How easy is it to get distracted when working on something that doesn’t interest us? Cultivating this virtue enables us to focus on the task and work consistently, making good use of our time. It builds maturity and prepares a person for lifelong growth.   

This week, pay close attention to those around you. Do you notice when someone is focusing on an assignment, regardless of what is happening around them? Is there a student that gets to work immediately on their morning tasks? It may look and sound like the following example: 

Name: Tina, I noticed you immediately got to your morning board work.

Explain: You practiced the virtue of industriousness because you could have talked to your friends instead.  

Express: Thank you for being an example to your classmates of what it means to be industrious. 

Spot the virtue of industriousness in at least one person this week. 

Prayer 

Each day this week, recite the following prayer: 

Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, 
May I be inwardly seized by You so that I may be loving to those I meet this day.