Recently I have been impacted by some things people have said to me in very personal ways. This has got me thinking of all the Men who have in one way or another shown me Christ in my life. Here is a short list of those moments because I believe they are worth sharing. Take some time today to recall those that have impacted you and planted seeds in your life.

 My dad showed me how to honor his wife, even when he disagrees.

My father-in-law has been the greatest example of trust in the Lord and of how to love without judgment.

Father Ed. pointed me to Christ more times than I can remember however one time in particular he said (paraphrase), “If you aren’t seeking the gifts, then you are fighting the evil”.  He also says at the beginning of most Masses, "we are here because Jesus is here."  Amen.  That is all I need to know.

Monsignor said in a Homily; “Faith is personal but Religion is communal.” He is also an example to me of how to love without judgment.

Fr. Kenny told me, when I needed it most, that I didn’t have to be perfect and that we all go through seasons in life so don’t freak out when your prayer life is a little rocky, it’ll work out.

My friend Paul once told me that Sarah (my wife) is like his sister, and should I hurt her he’d have to kill me. That is the first time anyone held me accountable for how I treated a girl…which until that point wasn’t acceptable.

My friend Tom said to me while I was struggling with the decision for Sarah and I to have more children, “I get a glimpse of God every time we have another baby.”

My brother-in-law told me after I converted, got married, and had a son; “your sister and I are proud of you.” That has been a source of strength and confidence for me.

A Baptist preacher quoted Romans 1:17 at a youth camp I attended with my friend Josh Matthew. “The just shall live by faith…” That statement has carried me through some dark times in my life.

My friend Deacon Mick said to me once that believed I could have handled a situation better than I had, and felt as though I knew the right thing to do if I only just believed.

A mentor and former boss told me that whether or not I intended harm when saying things was irrelevant because the perception was already set….now I only had to pick up move forward and recover. Which I did because he believed I could and I would not let him down.

My friend Deacon Jeff once said in a homily that we have to “check yes” I believe in those Truths that are unchanging if we truly want to live a Catholic life.

My former spiritual director and friend Rick told me to pray the Psalms.  Simple as it sounds, it will change your life.

Whether he coined it or not my friend Bish lives the rule: “make a friend, be a friend, bring a friend to Christ,” and for that I am thankful.

My friend Father John told me once that no matter how much I felt pulled to do more ministry, work harder, or do more, if I neglected my vocation as a husband and father then I wasn’t being true to God.

And lastly, my sons all tell me that I am their hero, and that is more motivation to be a good Catholic man than anything I have ever heard.

Do not let the workers in the vineyard go hungry by not sharing your faith with them and showing them the fruit their labors have born. For too long we sit back and reflect on the nice things that happen to us. Rather we should not only be paying it back, we should be passing it on.

Be a Man today. Tell someone important to you what they really mean to you and your life by giving them a call or simply saying, thank you.

To my friends, mentors, fathers, parents, and those who have touched my heart, you are forever in my prayers and I thank you for the seeds you planted for the fruit of my life is a joy to me.

Going forward I'm going to post the little things and the big things people say to me that make me think of plant seeds.  Feel free to email me quotes from those that plant seeds in your life.  I'll include them and post them too.

God bless

This past weekend I traveled to MI for my sister-in-laws wedding. I’m very happy to report that their wedding was beautiful and the guests enjoyed themselves. Emily is now a happily married lady and I couldn’t be more joy filled to see her smile and in love with Dave. Being present for her wedding was a close moment for me because my wife’s family has, like all families, had their moments with a teenage daughter and to see how happy mom and dad were, and to see by brother-in-laws happy, and my wife happy, was a blessing. God bless you Emily and Dave. May God richly bless you and increase your inheritance as he did Jabez. May you find true Joy in knowing your souls companion delivered by God.

 Watching them get married also brought me close to God in another way. When I first learned that they were to be married by a magistrate rather than in a church, I panicked. My sister-in-law grew up a Catholic and I feared that a wedding in this manner would present problems with God. After some searching I found, through the direction of a trusted friend and priest, that since she has chosen a non-Catholic faith and left the Church she was no longer bound by Catholic norms for marriage.

My response was not judgment, rather it was in fear that I became concerned for her. I did not want their marriage to be seen as bad by the Church. Nor did I want to subject us to the decision of supporting a marital ceremony seen as scandalous by the Church. I say this to point something out about Catholics, us, we the believers.

 The Church has a deposit of faith that is unchanged since Christ walked the earth and since the Holy Spirit first descended upon the Apostles in the Upper Room. This faith is constant and you can count on it. You and I can count on our faith.

Let me say it again. You and I can count on our faith.

You see, in my heart I knew this marriage was right. I knew that God wanted them to be married. But my lack of full understanding caused me to fear in my intellect that it would not be endorsed by the Church. I was ready, as Abraham was, to take one for the team and not go in my mind, but in my heart I was already watching them say “I do”.

“So Bob, what’s the point” you ask. The point my feathered friend is that the more we know about our faith and our Church, the better we can make decisions based on faith. I did exactly what I admonish others for doing…I made a decision about something without the fullness of truth as my guide.

How often do we do this? I can count on a calculator that has more than 7 digits the number of times I have heard, “I’m a practicing Catholic, man I try to get to Mass at least twice a month.” Or, “I believe in Abortion but I’m a Catholic and that’s okay.” Or my favorite, “The Eucharist is just a sign, that old ideal about it really being Jesus is over now.”

So here is my simple conclusion to this long post about me being a short sighted uninformed decision maker who learned his lesson.

Begin with love: If you truly believe, your heart won’t guide you wrong.

Back it up with Truth: The old ‘trust and verify’ method.

Trust your heart, verify with the knowledge of 2000 years of tradition and theology.

And lastly: ASK. My good friend Tom who has more than once said something smart told me I was crazy to not attend the wedding which affirmed my heart. Our true friends who know the desire of our heart is Christ, will always lead us to him.

So go forth, be fruitful in the Spirit, multiply if your are married, and…. Make good decisions based in faith. Until next time I’m your host…humble bob.