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3 Important Life Lessons from St. Thérèse

September 30, 2020 by Andy Lesnefsky 12 Comments

By worldly measures, Thérèse didn’t accomplish much before she died at the age of 24. However, her love, her wisdom, and her passion for life have much to teach us, especially in these tumultuous times.

There is only one thing to do here below: to love Jesus, to win souls for Him so that He may be loved. Let us seize with jealous care every least opportunity of self-sacrifice. Let us refuse Him nothing — He does so want our love.”

Today I wanted to share three profound life lessons I have learned from her that I think are great reminders for us!

1. You can impact more people than you imagine. It starts with the small things.

Two saints are known as the patron of missions. Saint Francis Xavier traveled extensively including to Africa and Asia. He was one of the first missionaries to India and Japan. He helped convert thousands and thousands of people through his preaching of the Gospel.

Saint Thérèse, on the other hand, spent her whole life in an obscure corner of France. She didn’t travel. In fact, another nun was reported to have said of her after her death, “I cannot understand why people speak of Sister Thérèse as if she were a saint. She never does anything notable.”

Thérèse is recognized as the Patroness of Missions because of her fervent love of Jesus, her intercession for missionaries both while on earth and now in heaven, and her missionary heart for those who don’t know the love of Jesus.

“I have the vocation of the Apostles. I would like to travel over the whole earth to preach your Name and to plant your glorious cross on infidel soil. But…one mission alone would not be sufficient for me, I would want to preach the Gospel on all the five continents simultaneously and even to the most remote isles. I would be a missionary, not for a few years only, but from the beginning of creation until the consummation of the ages.” – St. Thérèse

In my years in ministry, I have had the pleasure of working with people both young and old, rich and poor. One thing that I have found across the variety of ages and socio-economic backgrounds is that people underestimate the impact they can have on the world and the people around them.

Don’t underestimate how valued and loved you are. You can change the world. Like St. Thérèse, love God and others through the little things.

2. We are never satisfied because God created us that way. He created us with a longing for him.

O my God, you have surpassed all my expectations.”- St. Thérèse

Often times in life we can feel like we need more. “It” is not enough.

It can be:
• Money
• Friendships
• Social Media
• Or just about anything.

“It” is not always a sinful thing. It can even be something good like friendship or being with others. We want more. We feel empty when others aren’t around.

Sometimes the hunger for something leads us down a dark path. We get addicted to chasing “it.”

No “it” will ever satisfy us. I used to think this was primarily due to my selfish nature, but I’ve come to understand from St. Thérèse it’s more because Jesus is the only thing that truly satisfies.

Things and people can point us towards him, but the minute we try to replace the creator with a created thing or someone else we are sure to be left feeling empty.

Taste and see how good God is, and you find like St. Thérèse, he will surpass all your expectations.

3. God is calling you, today, to be a great saint.

“You cannot be half a saint; you must be a whole saint or no saint at all.”

and

“Holiness consists simply in doing God’s will, and being just what God wants us to be.”  – St. Thérèse

Holiness seems like a distant, impossible task, but if that were the reality, God would be cruel. If he is loving, he would not tell us to be something we could not attain.

You need to believe that God is calling you to be a saint. Not a saint tomorrow or when death is imminently knocking on your door. He is calling you to be a saint today.

Look around at our church. The world doesn’t need a bunch of saints in 50 years from now. It requires the witness of holy men and women today. We need to recommit ourselves to prayer, to the Holy Spirit, and the spreading of the Gospel.

St. Thérèse wasn’t content with being half a saint and I pray that you won’t be either.

Any of these life lessons encourage or challenge you? Have another favorite quote of St. Thérèse? Share in the comments below!

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Filed Under: Saints, Uncategorized Tagged With: Lessons, Little Flower, St. Therese

The Distressing Disguise

February 7, 2018 by Andy Lesnefsky Leave a Comment

REFLECT – You haven’t quite lived a full life until you’ve met Donnie Swipel. To be clear, Donnie isn’t a real person, but an imaginary character that my daughter Ella pretends to be at times. Usually, there’s some sort of disguise and funny voice that accompanies Donnie’s random, hilarious appearances. The disguises of little kids always make me smile.

Today’s video is part 2 of a mini-series on Mother Teresa. One of the things she asked of the Missionary of Charity Sisters was that they saw Jesus in the “distressing disguise of the poor” and in the Eucharist. My prayer is that this week you will have the joy of a child as you see Jesus in the hidden presence of bread and in the poor.

SHARE – As you try to see Jesus in the “distressing disguise of the poor,” do one tangible thing this week to love Jesus in them. Mother Teresa loved to remind people they don’t need to come to Calcutta to do something beautiful for God. She would tell people, “Find your own Calcutta.” Love the poor where you live this week.

PRAY – Jesus, please help me to see you in the disguise of the poor and in the disguise of the Eucharist. Grow in my heart a burning love for you in both these distressing disguises that I may know you more. Amen


LATEST PODCAST EPISODE: What’s Your Ultimate?

 What’s ultimate in your life? This week’s podcast episode is an invitation to move from the trained answer to making Jesus our real answer. The Catholic Saint featured in this episode is St. Charles Borromeo. You can be holy. You can be a saint.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN

Filed Under: Saints, ShareJesus Tagged With: #ShareJesus, Andy Lesnefsky, Mother Teresa

Lessons From Mother Teresa

January 30, 2018 by Andy Lesnefsky Leave a Comment

REFLECT – The great saint Mother Teresa often reminded people to “do something beautiful for God.” This week’s and next week’s videos feature a couple of simple lessons from St. Teresa of Calcutta on how we can live lives of holiness.

We are called to be extraordinary even if it’s Ordinary Time. You are made for greatness. God invites you to be a saint!

SHARE – This week, pray for 3-4 people daily by name who you know are spiritually thirsty for God. Ask the Holy Spirit to lead you to an opportunity to share God’s love with them.

PRAY – Come Holy Spirit, fill me today. Lead me. Help me to hear Your voice. Jesus, I long to know Your love and how You thirst for me. Help me to quench Your thirst and lead souls to You. Amen.


Latest Podcast Episode: When in Rome – St. Ambrose & Prayer

When in Rome… Did you know that saying comes from one of the saints? Learn more and join us on our journey towards becoming Catholic Heroes as we talk about prayer and putting God first.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN



One of the main points of #ShareJesus is to help you share your faith with others.
Don’t do Lent alone. Invite a friend to join you!

Filed Under: Saints, ShareJesus Tagged With: #ShareJesus, Andy Lesnefsky, Mother Teresa

What was I thinking?

January 19, 2017 by Andy Lesnefsky 25 Comments

 

This question might sound dramatic, “What was I thinking?” However, if you told me that I would have started this new internet venture even 3 months ago, I probably would laugh. I am passionate about using the latest means of technology and communication to share the good news of the gospel. This didn’t seem to fit at first, but now I see God using it in great ways.

What Was I Thinking Podcast Blog Andy Lesnefsky

What is it? 

I would like to introduce you to my new podcast Catholic Heroes. It’s a 10-15-minute podcast that focuses on our call to be saints, Catholic heroes, by looking to the lives of the saints as guides and inspiration.

You were created by God for great things. My hope is that this podcast will help you discover who God created you to be. Holiness is exactly that.

Now I realize reading this announcement might seem like your neighbor telling you how excited they are about getting dial-up internet. I am mean aren’t podcast old news? Are they relevant?

Consider these two statistics:

21% of Americans listen to a podcast at least monthly (and that’s a 23% increase from last year.) Source 

and

Apple has surpassed 1 billion subscriptions for podcasts via iTunes Source

If you haven’t discovered or rediscovered podcasts recently, check them out. I love listening to a good podcast when driving, working out, or even doing some work around the house. I think podcasts are a great medium for learning, growing, and engaging in thoughtful conversation.

My Show Idea

We believe that every person is called to be holy and to be a saint. That call can sound overwhelming, intimidating, and even silly if we don’t understand what that means. Each week I talk about what this call to be holy means and I look at the life of a saint. The saints show us great examples of how to live out that call to be heroes. My goal is to share 2-3 lessons from the saint I am discussing that can help you on your journey in following Jesus.

Each episode normally starts off as a Facebook Live video on Tuesday afternoon and then gets converted into a podcast episode (you can join in live at Facebook.com/redeemedonline Tuesdays at 2 PM EST).

I want to invite you to check out the episodes on my website here or subscribe on iTunes Here or Google Play Here. If you like it (I hope you do), please leave a review on iTunes. This helps get the word out and helps other people find the podcast.

I would love to know what saints you would like me to talk about? Any other podcasts you would like to highly recommend? Share below- love hearing from you!

Filed Under: Holiness, Saints, Uncategorized Tagged With: Catholic Heroes, Podcast

Partner with me

Partner with me

February 15, 2021 By Andy Lesnefsky 7 Comments

https://youtu.be/5wy8wDUo0Gg Let’s connect  The internet is quite a fantastic thing. Together over the past few years, … [Read More...]

Why I needed a hard pause

Why I needed a hard pause

February 15, 2021 By Andy Lesnefsky 2 Comments

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u84aG8KI4lE&feature=youtu.be   “Slow down. Focus on what matters.” This has … [Read More...]

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