Life is richer when we walk on a clear path that prioritizes our Gospel mission rather than worldly things.
A core objective of the spiritual journey is to love others as God loves them — a hard enough goal to accomplish without the attractions and distractions of the world. Let our pursuits not be for vanities: the accumulation of wealth, physical possessions, or even the intangible acquisition of fame, reputation, or status.
The Lord of life wants us to be full of life, and he tells us the secret of life: we come to possess it only by giving it away.
— Pope Francis (@Pontifex) April 23, 2021
Our life is meant to be given away!
I’m a checklist person, so I want to know, to quantifiably answer, Am I giving my life away?
We can answer this to some extent, by inventorying how we spend our gifts — namely our time, talent, and treasure.
What's On This Page
Gifts of Time
Review your calendar and look at how much time you are spending on things that build up and support you, others, and grow your faith life with God.
The vocation to family life is filled with this gift! I rack up hours taking care of kids, taking care of things for kids, making an income to provide for my kids, etc.
In doing these things, I give up my life, I die to my self, in order to fulfill God’s calling.
I would not need the 9-to-5 if I was only providing for myself!
Gifts of Talent
Gifts of talent are like an “in kind” donation. They are a donation of your time, due to effort spent, but also a way you can share the unique gifts God has given you to further the Gospel and build up others.
What are you good at? How can you put that to use to further the gospel? Are you willing to do tasks that others aren’t? Maybe there are volunteer opportunities around, or maybe you pitch a way to help at your parish.
BC (before children), I worked for 5 years at the Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops. In a way that was a tithe of my working years — the first 10% — back to God.
I volunteered on so many things — assisting with Mass as a lector, lay minister of Holy Communion, musician (have YOU ever been to Mass with a bassoon? 😹) , leading the Gabriel Project, teaching religious education, starting a volunteering group for tutoring students, working at the parish food pantry, leadership in our young adult group…
Whew, just reading that makes me tired. Why did I do all that stuff instead of nap? Because I knew God called me to give back, and especially as a person without a lot of treasure to give, I could give of myself.
Gifts of Treasure
Tithing is not an obligation, but rather a way of sharing our treasure and in doing so, another way we give up and sacrifice.
Kimberly Hahn’s recent Beloved and Blessed podcast featured an episode on Tithing, in which I learned:
- Tithing and Alms are different. Tithing is the traditional 10%, while alms are on top of that. Listen to the podcast, she provides scriptural references for it.
- Tithing should be done on your pre-tax income if possible. I know this seems super nuanced, however, it can make a large impact on our giving. I won’t bore you with a math example here, but the idea is that we shouldn’t give less because of arbitrary rules from the government.
While I have tithed since the start of my adult life, I try not to let it be an “autopilot autopay” kind of thing. I want to be intentional and express gratitude to God for the gifts I have and that I can share them with His church.
“Whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. “
Matthew 16:25
Let us pray: Lord Jesus, I pray that for your sake I have the heart, the strength, the courage, to lose my life. Help me eradicate all the things in my earthly life that take me away from you, that pull me away from your call to mission. I trust that my journey to follow you will allow me to bring joy, comfort and love to others, satiate the deepest desires of my heart for meaning, belonging, and acceptance, and ultimately lead me deeper into love with you, the Author of Life, in whom alone can give me life in its fullest.