How We Can Build and Share Our Faith with Others
St. Ignatius of Antioch reminds us: “Have a steadfast faith in Jesus Christ and love Him. That is the beginning and end of life: faith the beginning and love the end. When the two are united you have God. Everything else that has to do with real goodness is dependent on faith and love.”
As we journey with our neighbors, we are called to spiritually accompany our neighbors. As we meet, serve and accompany our neighbors, I would like to share with you a 3 point plan in how we can build and share our faith with helping others in their spiritual journey.
1.Pray: Nothing that is great is accomplished without prayer. As we meet with our neighbors, we pray together. As you help plant the seed in prayer requests, remember that our time is not God’s time. Let us join with our neighbors in praying to our Lord. Always remember that Hopelessness is not in Jesus’s vocabulary, Pray…
2. Meet people where they are. Love people unconditionally. Do not judge. You be the example of Christ to others. In our Vincentian vocation, may we serve our neighbors in all that we do. As we encounter Christ in the poor, the sick, the homeless, and the elderly, let us work to feed more people, heal more people, teach more people, provide housing to more people . As Vincentians we are reminded that every person was created in the image and likeness of God and thus bears an innate dignity. We are called to first unconditionally love God and go forward in our love for our neighbors.
3. Make a connection. As we accompany our neighbors we are called in our vocation to help in bringing hope as they go forward. There is always hope. In our faith, we are called to live the Gospel radically with the zeal of unconditional love for others. Vincentians, let us always remember that Christ has not changed. He is the same yesterday, today and forever.
In our call to Holiness, may we follow our Vincentian vocation and may we continually grow in our faith and in our unconditional love for God and for our neighbors.
