The Invitation

One

We recently received this note from a member:

I first heard of the Movement of the Holy Family at a women's retreat at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Peachtree City, GA. Mike and Troy spoke. The talks about suffering and St. Photina really pierced my heart. I had always identified with the Samaritan woman because my story was much like hers. I was at a very dark place and very far from the Catholic church when my mother-in-law asked me to go to that retreat.

I had to work after the retreat. I was working as a Bartender. On a trip back from the food window, I noticed that Troy, and some of the women who arranged the retreat were there.

I was overwhelmed with the thought that I needed to tell them how impactful the retreat was for me. They were warm and receptive to my words. Before they left, one of them bounded over to the bar and invited me to a rosary and conversation gathering.

I went. From that point until this, Holy Family has been integral in my and my husband's returning to the church. Last November we had our marriage convalidated; then on the next day ,we had our FIRST Holy Communion together as a couple.

So Thankful to Our Lady, to Jesus and for you all.

We are blessed to receive letters like this often. Notice; though the retreat and rosary impacted Robin, the real turning point was an invitation by someone. This is the difficult part. It is easy for Mike and I to record these rosaries, and speak at events. The real challenge is the personal invitation to others. That takes courage and vulnerability. Friendship with Christ begins by encountering Him. But to truly be a friend of Christ, we must accept his mission. We must invite others into the love we have found.

Two

When my kids were little, my wife belonged to a group of young Catholic mothers. One day, one of the mom’s invited another young mom to attend. Before this new mother arrived, the group was asked to be extra friendly and open. They knew how difficult it can be for an outsider to show up to a meeting when everyone in the group is already friends. My wife says she has remembered that advice ever since. 25 years later, these women are still friends. Their friendship has lasted by these simple steps: invitation, hospitality and friendship, good conversation, and prayer. Our culture is starving for deep abiding friendship. Remember these words of Christ: “I was a stranger and you welcomed me … Truly, I say to you, as you did this to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me.” Matthew 25

Three

I have been to the catacombs beneath Rome many times. It strikes me every time that Christians were buried together, sometimes in crowded spaces. They would secretly celebrate Masses for their dead there when Christianity was still persecuted. This is how much these Christians valued gathering and sharing their faith. They risked their lives, coming to an undesirable location to pray for each other after death. Tertullian, an ancient Church Father, wrote, ““What marks us in the eyes of our enemies is our loving kindness.  ‘Only look,’ they say, ‘look how they love one another’” (Tertullian, Apology 39). Christ’s prayer for us is this “that they be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you… I made your name known to them, and I will make it known, so that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.’” (John 17). May Christ’s love animate our friendships, conversations, and prayers.

Four

For all of its flaws, the modern world is rightly fixated on inclusivity, though it fails to understand what it means and how to properly attain it. What is the source of unity? It is not and will never be a political party, a system of government or economics. It isn’t a constitution or bill of rights. These things fail in the end. The only true source of unity is Jesus, the Word in the beginning. But the unity of Christ is not forced. He gives us a choice. The devil tries to keep us too busy and fearful to make this choice. Jesus, you made us for communion. Help us find it, today!

Five

One common complaint against Christianity is that we are hypocrites; that we don’t practice the love and community we preach. This is true—we are sinners. But this did not stop the Apostles, who were great at sinning, so it cannot stop us. We want to be a part of a community real love and friendship. But we are weak, and the devil does everything he can to stop real communion from happening. Distraction, business, and entertainment swallow the room for community. We too easily wait for someone else to do the inviting. The reason we built an app was to make it easier for you to create your teams. In the show notes I will have the steps on how to use the app to create your team. Today, ask God who and how to invite. Make a plan to invite others to come to our homes, and we to theirs, to share and enjoy the communion, friendship and love Christ desires for us!