I find it interesting that being brave is often associated with fearlessness. I disagree with this correlation. The word brave is defined as follows: "ready to face and endure danger or pain; showing courage." Last weekend we were invited to the Baptism of a child of friends of mine. As I sat in the Church listening to Father speak about the importance of Baptism, what was about to happen, I was struck with this profound understanding of bravery in the spiritual sense and in the worldly sense. You see, for us to authentically live out our Catholic Christian faith, we must be brave. We cannot run the other direction. As Catholic Christians, we are called to face the challenges of this world with the love and peace of Christ.
More and more I find myself speaking with people who lack this bravery. They lack the courage to stand firm, whether it is standing up for the Church and Her teaching or saying "yes" to their vocation. I don't think this lack of bravery comes from a lack of desire but rather the lack of understanding of Who they are living for. Jesus says in Chapter 15 of St. John's Gospel,
"If the world hates you, realize that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, the world would love its own; but because you do not belong to the world, and I have chosen you out of the world, the world hates you. Remember the word I spoke to you, 'No slave is greater than his master.' If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours." (John 15:18-20)Jesus is telling his disciples that the storm clouds are already here and they'll continue. One of my favorite lines in this passage is the line, "I have chosen you out of the world". The Lord has chosen us. Often times I find myself bombarded by thoughts about my own inadequacy. I feel overwhelmed and like I can't "hack it". As I was driving home and pondering this idea of being brave I decided to throw out the garbage. Jesus said things would be hard and that we would face opposition. But He chose us. He knows all of our weaknesses and chooses to use us anyway. I cannot forget that later in John's Gospel Jesus says,
"When the Advocate comes whom I will send you from the Father, the Spirit of truth that proceeds from the Father, he will testify to me. And you also testify, because you have been with me from the beginning." (John 15: 26-27)I am not staying faithful on my own but with the help of the Advocate. We must seek to be brave for the right reasons and not fear the storm ahead. I made a firm decision today that I will no longer worry about my own weaknesses but rather stand brave in the face of anything that tries to deter me from living an authentic Catholic Christian life. We are children of the light (Ephesians 5:8) and let's live that way!
Written by Alycia
