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Failing at Lent

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Thought for today:

All too often, Lent becomes like most mid-January letdowns. We begin with big plans and drastic promises, convinced that this time is going to be different than every previous attempt to improve ourselves. But what if we let our failures turn our hearts back to God? What if our broken promises and our backpedaling, instead of burying us, could point us to our need for a Savior? After all, Lent is less about our strength and more about God’s unrelenting faithfulness to us in the midst of our brokenness.

Action for today:

Call to mind one way that you’ve fallen short this Lent, and offer this up to God in prayer. Recognize your inability to fix yourself and call out to the God who comes to heal and restore.

Prayer for today:

Jesus, I wish I could offer you a list of my accomplishments. But You know me too well, and You know that I fall short every day. I surrender my shortcomings, my sins, and my inability to save myself. I need You. Thank you for the opportunities to love you and for the ways that even my failures point me back to you. Thank you for loving me unconditionally.

Quote for Today:

blog post #sharejesus brian (1)“Three times I begged the Lord about this, that it might leave me, but he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.’ I will rather boast most gladly of my weaknesses, in order that the power of Christ may dwell with me.” – 2 Corinthians 12: 8-9 (CLICK TO TWEET)

Be a Hero today – #ShareJesus:

Share with one person today how God has worked in your life, even through your own failures and shortcomings.

About the Author:

Brian Kissinger lives in the foothills of the Austrian Alps, where he serves as Director of Student Life for Franciscan University’s Study Abroad program. He has a passion for sharing the Gospel, and he emphasizes a message of hope in a culture that has lost its sense of purpose. Brian married the girl of his dreams, Courtney, in 2012, and they are the proud parents of Ellie, Francis, and another baby due in early May!

#ShareJesus is produced in partnership with Franciscan University. Begin your journey with Franciscan at franciscan.edu

The Message of the Cross

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Brian Kissinger #ShareJesus cross (1)What did Jesus actually accomplish? He claimed to bring peace, and yet our world is still ravaged by war. He claimed to bring life, and we’re still dying down here. What did Jesus bring to the world? This question was posed to Pope Benedict XVI by a non-Christian friend, and the Pope’s response was very simple. Jesus brought God. Being fully God and fully man, Jesus enters into every corner and every dark, scary place that we could ever find ourselves in. Now even death itself is known and experienced by God. No matter where we are, we have a God who’s been there.

The message of the cross is that we are pursued endlessly by Love that will stop at nothing. So desperately does the Father desire to rescue us that He would send His only Son, His very heart, to save us from sin and death. It sounds like a great idea, but do we really believe it? Is Good Friday just another story from a long time ago, or have you experienced the reality of God’s presence in the midst of suffering and loneliness? What is one step in Christ’s journey to Calvary that stands out to you and speaks loudly of God’s love for us?  

Watch the video:

4 Ways to Take This Offline

  1. Spend 5 minutes in prayer today, reflecting on just one of the sufferings Jesus endured for us
  2. Share today’s video on social media or send it to someone via text or email
  3. In the next few days, seek out someone you know who is struggling or lonely.
  4. Make time Spend time tomorrow, Holy Saturday, praying and reflecting on how God has brought life and hope into your own life.

About our Speaker:

Brian Kissinger lives in the foothills of the Alps, where he is the Director of Student Life for Franciscan University’s Austrian Program. He has a passion for sharing the Gospel, and he emphasizes a message of hope in a culture that has lost its sense of purpose. More importantly, Brian is married to the girl of his dreams, Courtney, and they have been blessed with 2 kids (Ellie and Brian Francis). But most importantly, Brian has known Andy Lesnefsky for the past 16 years.

 

Listening to the Holy Spirit

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Listening to the Holy Spirit #ShareJesus Brian Kissinger (1)What if evangelization was more about listening than speaking? All too often, we think of sharing the Gospel as a talk or presentation that we rehearse in advance. This is quite different from Jesus’ instructions to His disciples, when He insisted that the Holy Spirit would tell them in the moment what they were to say (Luke12:11). But listening is hard. It requires silence, and it requires trusting in the wild belief that the Holy Spirit will actually speak to me in a way I can understand. It’s much easier to prepare a talk, to memorize a list of arguments, or to share a faith-related meme.

When we spend time daily in prayer, learning to listen for the voice of the Holy Spirit, we become more aware of His promptings. We learn to prioritize His agenda over our own, and we begin to ask what He would have us say rather than what we think other people need to hear.

WATCH THE VIDEO:

4 Ways To Take This Offline:

  1. Spend 10 minutes just listening for the Lord in prayer.
  2. Identify 1 person you believe God wants you to share the Good News with.
  3. Spend the next few days praying that the Holy Spirit would tell you how He wants you to share Jesus.
  4. Pray for the Holy Spirit’s guidance before, during, and after your interactions with people today.

 

About our Speaker:

Brian Kissinger lives in the foothills of the Austrian Alps, where he serves as Director of Student Life for Franciscan University’s Study Abroad program. He has a passion for sharing the Gospel, and he emphasizes a message of hope in a culture that has lost its sense of purpose.  Brian is married to the girl of his dreams, Courtney, and they are the proud parents of Elliana and Brian2.0

twitter: kysengur

instagram: kysengur

His Best Friend Betrayed Him

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Tomorrow Holy Week begins. Palm Sunday’s mass includes the passion narrative, where we hear and enter into the story of Jesus’ unwavering love for us. I can only imagine what the experience would be like for someone who comes to mass for the first time on Palm Sunday. It must sound strange to be in a church full of Christians echoing the words of Jerusalem’s crowds calling for Jesus’ crucifixion. Instead of pointing the blame at men and women who lived 2,000 years ago, we are reminded that it was our sins and our betrayals of our Lord that led to His crucifixion.

Karen Reynolds blog 2 #ShareJesusThroughout Holy Week, we are invited to find ourselves in the story of redemption. We aren’t just the recipients of God’s love, we are also the ones whose sin nailed Jesus to the cross. While I like to imagine myself faithful till the end like Mary and John, I’ve denied like Peter and I’ve betrayed like Judas so many times in my life. In Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus tells the story of the unforgiving servant (Matthew 18:21-35). The parable tells us of a man who is completely forgiven of a debt he could never repay, only to severely punish those who owed him relatively insignificant debts.

Today, Karen Reynolds (@klynnr7) shares about the choice set before us when we experience betrayal. We can either let our suffering consume us or we can unite our sufferings to those of Christ. When we remember the incredible mercy offered us by Jesus, we can find the strength to forgive others as we’ve been forgiven. Radical forgiveness, offered to those who don’t deserve it, is only possible with God’s grace. Will we follow in Jesus’ footsteps, or will we seek revenge and let bitterness consume us?

Sharing Online

Quick Social Media Tip for today:

Consider sharing how #ShareJesus has made an impact in your life this Lent and invite people to join in for Holy Week.

For sharing on Social Media today:

  1. How has the grace of forgiveness made a difference in your life?
  2. What is one of your favorite verses in Scripture about God’s forgiveness?
  3. Who is one person you can think of that embodies radical forgiveness?

The YouTube link to share with your tweets today is https://youtu.be/sXiS9PD1NKQ Don’t forget to use the #ShareJesus.

Remember a Facebook Video share from our page is better than a Youtube Link on Facebook.

Taking it Offline

  • Ask Jesus for the grace to forgive others as He’s forgiven you.
  • Take a few minutes to reflect on Jesus’ forgiveness and mercy in your life.
  • Seek reconciliation with someone who has hurt you or someone who you’ve offended.

We are called to not only celebrate forgiveness, but to live it. #ShareJesus

I Can’t See Jesus

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We’re getting close to the end. The 12th chapter of John’s Gospel comes just before the Last Supper narrative, and we see the contrast between the Greeks who want to see Jesus (John 12:21) and His own people who are blind to His identity (John 12:40).

courtney brown blog #ShareJesusFrom Genesis on, we encounter the stories of people much like us. They desperately wanted to see God, but they were also afraid of being seen by Him. In this Sunday’s Gospel, Jesus points to the paradox of the cross. He will be glorified when He is made vulnerable on Calvary. Humanity will see the feet of God nailed for our offenses. We will see the back of God beaten for our brokenness, and we will see the face of God disfigured for our sake.

Vulnerability is a terrifying thing. Even with those we love the most, there is always an element of fear in revealing our hearts to another. And yet this is what we are called to as followers of Jesus.

Today, Courtney Brown shares about vulnerability, our desire for it and our fear of it.

Sharing Online

Quick Social Media Tip for today is from Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI:
“In social networks, believers show their authenticity by sharing the profound source of their hope and joy: faith in the merciful and loving God revealed in Christ Jesus. This sharing consists not only in the explicit expression of their faith, but also in their witness, in the way in which they communicate “choices, preferences and judgements that are fully consistent with the Gospel, even when it is not spoken of specifically”
For sharing on Social Media today:
1. Who is one person that has shown you unconditional love?

2. When have you experienced the unconditional love of Jesus in the sacrament of Confession or the Eucharist?

The YouTube link to share with your tweets today is https://youtu.be/itiy89LG5VE Don’t forget to use the #ShareJesus.

Taking it Offline

  • Be vulnerable with Jesus in prayer today. Don’t hide your heart from Him.
  • Thank someone today who has loved you faithfully and shown you God’s love.
  • Let someone know that they are appreciated today.

Sometimes we miss seeing God because we are so busy. Don’t be so busy today that you miss what God is saying to you!

I would love to connect with you.

Whether you want to connect with me about #ShareJesus or are looking to connect about a project, contact me to kick things off.