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Be Disciples
In order to walk with one, you must first be a disciple by being rooted in a relationship with Christ. It's from that relationship that our mission to go forth and be a disciple emerges.
What is a disciple? Quite simply a follower of Jesus Christ - however, it's so much more than just a follower but someone who strives to become like Christ. We are like a hot piece of metal, when metal is placed in a flame, it takes on the properites of the fire and becomes so hot it can actually set straw on fire. We are to be pieces of metal taking on the properites of Christ so we can set the world on fire!Staying Rooted in Christ
The identity of a disciple springs first from a relationship with Jesus Christ. What is required to maintain any relationship? Time spent together. This is the same with our relationship with Jesus. We must spend time in prayer with the one we love. We must frequent the sacraments so we can be internally transformed into his disciples more and more each time we participate. We must form our conscience and actions to be obedient to Jesus and His Church.
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Eucharistic Encounter + Eucharistic Identity
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Eucharistic Life + Eucharistic Mission
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Walk with One
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Learn More about Being a Disciple
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Make Disciples
Jesus left a command for each one of us called the Great Commission:
“Go . . . and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you” (Matt. 28:19-20).
Jesus left this commission to a group of fishermen and other followers who were not theologians or experts, nor did they have all the answers – they had the Holy Spirit. That is all you need to live out the Great Commission, and this command applies to each one of us. However, judging by the paltry numbers of people coming into the Church each year, it has become for us the Great Omission. Why? It’s uncomfortable to talk about faith: it’s scary, it's intimidating, what if they don’t like me? As Pope Benedict XVI said, “The world offers you comfort. But you were not made for comfort. You were made for greatness.”
How do I make Disciples?
All you need to do is simply follow the example of Jesus Christ…walk with one. During the three years of his active ministry, Jesus chose individuals to accompany him and eventually He formed a small group of followers called disciples. He discerned who to choose and prayed to the Lord. He formed these followers by living with them, loving them despite their faults, and modeling for them what it means to be His follower. Without this investment of His time in those relationships, we would never have had the original 12 Apostles. The cycle continued. Those 12 Apostles made more disciples, multiplying the seeds Jesus had sown, using the same model of accompaniment and relationship. We are called to do this too.
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Steps to Walking with One
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Identify someone in a spirit of humility
Prayerfully begin to discern whom God is calling you to accompany. Identify one person whom you can patiently accompany. Once you identify that person, pray if this is the person God is putting into your life for a reason? Perhaps there is someone else whom God has placed in your life who needs Jesus.
Step 1: Identify
Eucharistic Examen
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Intercede for that person in communion with the Holy Spirit
Now that the Lord has identified a person whom you know, pray for the intercession of the Holy Spirit for this person and for yourself. Commit to pray for them for a specific period of time, asking God to open the opportunity for a conversation. Pray for any struggles the person might be facing with brokenness or sin, and for any obstacles that might impede this person from drawing closer to Jesus and exploring the Catholic faith more deeply.
Consider offering a holy hour or a novena of prayer for that person.
Step 2: Intercede
Eucharistic Examen
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Connect in Eucharistic friendship
Accompany this person in life. This requires patience and authenticity. This person cannot be a project. They cannot be someone you are pursuing simply to win one for Jesus. You accompany the person because you care about them. You “meet them where they are” by learning about them without judgment or a timeline. Build a relationship using skills of evangelization (scroll down the page).
Step 3: Connect
Eucharistic Examen
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Invite that person on a path most suitable for him or her:
People don’t care what you have to say until they know you care. Once you get to know this person and they trust you and know you care about them, look for opportunities to invite them to crack the door and learn more about Jesus. Through prayer, discern what they are ready for.
Mass may not be the first place you should take someone. How about an upcoming social at the church like the parish fish fry? Perhaps they would find Adoration nice for the silence. Maybe Stations of the Cross would interest them. A Bible study? Maybe start a small group with some friends and invite them to learn that way and meet some people (see below for information). It’s important that you accompany them to these places. Catholic things can be intimidating. Your guidance would be important to them.
Step 4: Invite
Eucharistic Examen
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Skills of EvangelizationClick on each item to learn more.
+ Pray with Others
+ Tell Your Story
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+ Active Listening
+ Share His Story (The Gospel)
+ Run a Small Group
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Go Forth
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“The[se] faithful are by baptism made one body with Christ and are constituted among the People of God; they are in their own way made sharers in the priestly, prophetical, and kingly functions of Christ; and they carry out for their own part the mission of the whole Christian people in the Church and in the world.”
– Lumen Gentium 31
The laity are unique compared to priests and religious because they live in the secular world. Religious and those who make holy orders are engaged in secular activities, but their vocation is sacred ministry. In comparison, the laity live out their Catholic faith in the temporal world by ordering all their activities to the will of God. You live in the world, in secular jobs with ordinary families and social lives. Therefore, it is the special role of the laity to spread the light of Christ in the secular world, offering up small sacrifices and having gratitude for the great love and gifts from God.
Praying and acting as disciples on mission goes far beyond volunteering to help with parish needs and initiatives. Disciples on mission do not wait for “marching orders” from the pastor or parish, telling them exactly how to serve the Lord on mission. Instead, they take responsibility and ownership for discerning and living out their own mission in the world.
Saint John Paul II remarks that each person is sent on a mission and has a “unique task which cannot be done by another.” Let that sink in for a moment. God has plans for you THAT ONLY YOU CAN DO. There are some people who will be brought closer to Christ only through you!Your hands, your eyes, your ears, your mouth communicate Christ in a manner and location unique to you. No one else has the same personality, skills, gifts, scars, and idiosyncrasies. However, you are not the savior of the world, and the community of faith complements both your gifts and your weaknesses. Yet, no one can be leaven quite like you. Now “go forth” and “and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely, I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matthew 28: 19 – 20)
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Prayers for MissionThe Mission of My Life, St. John Henry Newman
God has created me to do Him some definite service. He has committed some work to me which He has not committed to another. I have my mission. I may never know it in this life, but I shall be told it in the next. I am a link in a chain, a bond of connection between persons. He has not created me for naught. I shall do good; I shall do His work. I shall be an angel of peace, a preacher of truth in my own place, while not intending it if I do but keep His commandments. Therefore, I will trust Him, whatever I am, I can never be thrown away. If I am in sickness, my sickness may serve Him, in perplexity, my perplexity may serve Him. If I am in sorrow, my sorrow may serve Him. He does nothing in vain. He knows what He is about. He may take away my friends. He may throw me among strangers. He may make me feel desolate, make my spirits sink, hide my future from me. Still, He knows what He is about.
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