ChristLife March April 06 Newsletter

March/April 2006

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Contents

Passion and Proclamation:
Pump up the Volume!

Commission

Praise For Building
Evangelizing Eucharistic Communities

Celebrate ChristLife's 10th Anniversary

Upcoming Events

Get Involved in Evangelization

Support Our Ministry

Passion and Proclamation: Pump up the Volume!

By Dianne Martin Sherri and Zach, a young couple with a young family, are leading the average American lifestyle. Both husband and wife are working. Though they are not wealthy, they are comfortable and able to provide for their needs. Their daughters, Kayleigh and Heather, are both healthy, active in sports and other activities. Though Sherri and Zach were each raised in a Christian home, neither of them have an active faith life nor are they involved in a church. All in all Sherri and Zach appear to be doing very well. So, what is the problem?

The problem is this – no one is talking to them about Jesus Christ!

We, every one of us, are called to PROCLAIM the Good News of Jesus Christ to everyone – our families, friends, co-workers, neighbors – the list goes on endlessly. Most of us, however, would rather have our teeth filled without Novocain than to risk offending someone with good news. More to the point, we do not want to express our religious views and thrust our opinions upon others. This is the perfect formula for silence!

It is crucial for us to “pump up the volume” about Jesus and speak about the light of life to this dark and crazy world. We live in a culture that is desperately hungry for good news, the Good News of Jesus!

What is needed is a passion for proclamation!

passion = intense interest, enthusiasm, ardor, fervor, eagerness, zeal, love
proclamation = public or formal announcement; the act of announcing something publicly or formally

Why is this subject of passion and proclamation relevant, much less, important? The answers lie in our responses to bigger questions. Why do we stand silent among the throngs who are waiting to hear the message of salvation? How many of us are driven by the passion of God’s love and the freedom from sin that has been won for us? How do I increase my passion for proclaiming the Good News of Jesus Christ? How do we stir up passion and enlist others to respond to the primary call of Christ to evangelize?

We have a friend in Ohio whose name is Jim. Jim is a very successful retired businessman. Having been involved in the music industry and owning his own businesses for many years, Jim is passionate in proclaiming Christ. His drive is fueled not by worldly success, but by God’s love for him and Jim’s desire to make Christ known. Jim is so committed to spreading the Gospel that he is always looking for innovative ways to bring the Gospel into the heart of his community.

Why? What generates Jim’s passion to proclaim Christ? What sparks passion in you?

Jim was transformed by the saving grace and living presence of the Lord Jesus. For him, every person’s need for Christ is reason enough.

The Gospels offer incredible testimony to what inspires passion in the hearts and lives of the apostles. There are two elements that are primary passion-generators: love and empowerment.

John 15:16 “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide…”
John 14:15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father, and he will give you another Counselor, to be with you for ever…”

It is the love of God revealed in Christ Jesus, our Lord, and our love for Him that sets our hearts on fire. Passion is born within the life, death, and resurrection of God’s only Son. Jesus lives for the Father and the Father’s mission, the restoration of his inheritance to the relationship for which we were created. It is God’s love for Christ and Christ’s love for us and our love for the Trinity. This love that is eternal is the fuel that ignites the passion for proclamation, which is the meaning and purpose for our life.

When Jesus appeared after the resurrection, he asked Peter if he loved him. Three times, the Lord repeated the question to Peter.

“Peter, do you love me?”

Yes, Lord. You know that I love you.

Feed my sheep. Tend my lambs. Feed my flock.

Peter, do this for me not because you are afraid of what I might do if you disobey, but because we love each other so deeply. (cf. John 21: 15-19).

The love of Christ impels Peter to be faithful and true to his mission to preach the Gospel.

The second passion-generator is empowerment. Every evangelist in the Gospel is sent forth in the power of the Holy Spirit.

John 20:21-23 “Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I send you.’ And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.’”

The Lord God has given us the authority and power to be His witnesses! We have the right to bear testimony to God and proclaim that Jesus is the only one who can reconcile us to the Father. The power of the Holy Spirit accompanies us to exercise the miracles of proclamation that lead to conversion.

Our heavenly Father wants us to know Him, love Him, and serve Him so that all men and women may hear of God’s saving love and power, encounter the Lord Jesus in a personal relationship, and live in the driving force of the Holy Spirit.

Why should all this matter? How is this relevant to my life?

It matters. It matters because we live in a culture that is desperate for love. We live among people who feel powerless in their quest for significance. It matters because we long for a passion that gives meaning and purpose, love and understanding to our existence.

Jesus Christ is the only source of life. He has called us to partake of His love, to be infused with His life, to burn with His passion, to share in His power. Why – because he uses us, his disciples, to proclaim the Good News to anyone who has not heard.

The season of passion is upon us. Lent is God’s provision for us to meditate upon his incomprehensible love and sacrifice. It is also a time to reflect on the passion of Christ, the selfless, persistent offering of life for which no price is too great to pay.

Our passion is the proclamation of Christ. The driving force that gives meaning and purpose to our existence is the passionate heart of God and the burning desire of the Holy Spirit that Christ be made known to all people.

During this Lenten season, pray and ask the Father to set your heart ablaze with the passion of His heart for his people. Ask for revelation that leads to action and look for opportunities to bring the Gospel into the center of your world. Ask the Holy Spirit to ignite you with the driving force of God’s word. Let your heart be consumed by the fire of divine love and ignite your passion for making Christ known.

And, proclaim Christ to the Sherri and Zach that our Lord has placed in your life!

Acts 4:20 “…we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.”

Commission

By Phil Fontaine How can a mind wrap around a Mystery? Not so much a wrap-around, more an engulfing by. Moses had it right. He removed sandals when confronted by the burning bush. He entered in to Presence beyond him. Into divinely initiated encounter To receive commission beyond his strength. From shepherd of fleecy flock to shepherd of stubborn hearted-chosen ones. I Am said “you will” and so he did. And in the doing Wonder: Of exodus-sea splitting Jericho-wall falling Mountain top-covenant making Chosen people forming. Deeds beyond imagining, borne of the mind of God, Accomplished by human flesh, God manifest in our midst. And today we kneel before a golden box, housing bread. How can a mind wrap around Mystery? Not wrapping around, more being engulfed by Madly-loving-God who invites, beckons, Our stubborn hearts. So loving, He waits, Immortal waiting upon mortal. God-Presence in Bread, by His choosing. Inviting to remove sandals and enter into Presence beyond us To encounter, commissioning, wonder-working.

If the Lord has impacted your life, tell us about it. Send your story, inspiration, or poetry to Dianne at info@christlife.org or mail it to ChristLife, 12290A Folly Quarter Rd., Ellicott City, MD 21042

Praise for Building Evangelizing Eucharistic Communities

We had the privilege of doing our BEEC seminar for the diocese of Altoona, Pennsylvania, in October, 2005. Sr. Linda LaMagna coordinated the event and recently wrote the following in a letter of referral: I came to know Dave Nodar, Dianne Martin, and the staff of the ChristLife office when we enlisted them as our Keynote speakers for

our annual Diocesan Evangelization Seminar [BEEC]. As a Diocesan Church we were both educated and enriched with their presentations and their Mission of Evangelization. Their presentations were absolutely creative and brilliant. One can readily see that they are dedicated to their mission and their work. The feedback from those attending the Seminar was overwhelmingly positive.

I so strongly feel that their organization is a definite need for the Catholic Church of today. They bring to life the mission of evangelization in a manner that the church has not yet experienced and yet needs to experience. They have worked hard to equip the Catholic Church with the practical tools necessary to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ. I see ChristLife as a needed “ mouth piece” for Evangelization becoming a reality for the church of today. I’ve experienced many organizations working with evangelization, but I have not found any of them to be as strong and dedicated to the Mission of Jesus Christ in practical ways, as I have experienced through ChristLife. They are leaders who, because of their commitment to the Central Mission of the Church must be considered outstanding.

For more information on how to schedule a Building Evangelizing Eucharistic Communities Seminar for your diocese or parish visit the above link.

Celebrate ChristLife's 10th Anniversary!

Sunday, April 30 at 6:00 PM
St. Louis Catholic Church
Clarksville, MD.

Come join us as we celebrate 10 years of ministry in the work of evangelization as an apostolate of the Archdiocese of Baltimore! All are invited.

Msgr. Joseph Luca will celebrate Mass at 6:00 p.m. A wine, cheese, and dessert reception will immediately follow in the Howard Bishop meeting room at St. Louis Church.

Upcoming Events

March 10-11 Board of Director’s Meeting Ellicott City, MD March 18 Sharing Christ Training Seminar Olympia, WA March 24-26 The New Evangelization: Overcoming the Obstacles Plymouth, MI March 30 New Evangelization Seminar Philadelphia, PA April 21, 22 New England Alpha Conference for Catholics N. Andover, MA April 27-28 Alpha for Catholics Seminar, Chicago Alpha Conference Oak Brook, IL April 30 10th Anniversary Celebration Clarksville, MD

For more information on ChristLife's upcoming events, visit our Calendar of Events.

ChristLife is a tax-exempt ministry dedicated to equipping Catholics for the work of evangelization. To continue in this work, we depend entirely on the donations of fellow Christians like you. We appreciate your support!

ChristLife is a lay Catholic ministry established in response to the Church's call to a new evangelization. William Cardinal Keeler recognized ChristLife as an apostolate of the Archdiocese of Baltimore in 1995.

"It appears that there are only a few Catholic ministries actually developing the means for Catholics to respond to the urgent call for a new evangelization and mission to the nations, and so I am especially grateful for this service."

For more information on ChristLife and what we do, visit our about us section.