For the last couple of months, our first readings at daily Mass have been from the stories of Genesis, the Exodus, Joshua, and Judges. Today we shift to Paul’s First Letter to the Thessalonians.

Most of Paul’s letters are written to communities he helped start. He writes the letters to help them continue to grow in faith. Each of Paul’s letters start with a greeting. In his greeting at the beginning of his first letter to the Thessalonians, he is thanking God for the great faith the Thessalonians now have.

Who is it that first started you on your journey of faith? Most of us have probably been Catholic our whole lives. That means it was probably our parents who brought us to church for baptism. Hopefully, your parents continued to inspire your faith. Is there someone else who was an inspiration to you? Sometimes, it was grandma. Sometimes it is a dear friend. It could be someone you barely know.

If you weren’t always Catholic, who inspired you in faith before you became Catholic? Who inspired you to become Catholic?

For me, it was my mother who saw to my baptism. However, honestly, we didn’t go to church a lot. Mom made sure we made our First Communion and Confirmation. I remember going to Sunday School but not always going to Mass. I remember a Sunday School teacher I had in fourth or fifth grade that invited students to come to Mass with her. I remember going to Mass with her family a couple of times when my family didn’t go after Sunday school.

After you think of who inspired you in the faith, ask yourselves what would that person think of your faith life today. Would they be proud?

Of course, our goal is to follow God. Our psalm response today is “The Lord takes delight in his people.” May you have all that you need so that you live our faith in a way that the Lord takes delight in you.

Peace,

Fr. Jeff