“…the servant’s master will come on an unexpected day and at an unknown hour and will punish him severely and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.” ~Mt 24:50-51

The word that came off the page as I read today’s gospel was persistence. The commitment and discipline to keep living like God commanded until the very end.

I contrast persistence with the “I have arrived” or “phoning it in” mentality. The mindset or attitude that a person takes when they have reached a certain goal and decide to remain at that level for the rest of their lives. They reach a point, set the cruise control, and forget about it.

I know very little about the lives of the saints, but every story I have heard mentions the saint doing the best they could until the end. Side note: If you happen to have access to the Hallow app, I strongly recommend their Radio Theater series “Saints Alive.” It’s designed for children but entertains all audiences.

Too many people…

…think that because they claim Jesus as their Lord and Savior, it’s a done deal and their place in heaven is not an “if” but a when. Not everyone that calls Him Lord will enter the kingdom of heaven (paraphrased Matthew 7:21)
…use the “I am a good person” excuse to stay in their spiritual comfort zone. “So, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew you out of my mouth. ~Revelation 3:16”
…decide it’s enough to attend Mass on Sundays and major holidays. “What does it profit, my brethren, if a man says he has faith but has not works? Can his faith save him?” ~James 2:14

I brought up these examples because I have been guilty of them.

In my teenage years, I was used to going to Mass on Sundays and claimed to believe in the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit but that was the extent of it. If you asked me if I was a good person, I would have said, “absolutely.” Being Catholic was another thing I did because that’s what most people said I should do.

At 17, I was confirmed and had an encounter with the Spirit, which lit a fire in me and I became super active in church. I served as a Catechist for a couple of years, led a youth group, participated in multiple retreats a year, and helped facilitate a version of “Youth Encounter The Savior” retreats. This period culminated with an invitation to a vocational retreat where I considered entering seminary.

Then college came and I let all that engagement settle into the “good enough” routine of attending Mass on Sundays and major holidays. I cruised there for over 20 years.

I didn’t persist. Life got in the way of my faith and I was content with being a “good person.”

It was only a few years ago that I started rediscovering my faith and began working on preparing for the master’s return.

Getting back on track has been challenging and frustrating. In 2018, I was laid off and spent the next four years without a job. The experience broke me in ways I didn’t expect. I had built my identity on being the provider and the belief that “if it’s to be, it’s up to me.” Losing that control forced me to confront how much of my faith had been convenience, not commitment. God had to strip away what I thought I controlled before I was willing to let go and rebuild with Him instead.

Trying to live like a proper Catholic hasn’t been easy when most people around me follow the will of the world. I still catch myself falling back into old habits. But through it all, I have gained a sense of peace. Things that used to bother me no longer have a hold on my emotional and mental state. I no longer worry about my future.

I still have a long way to go but I am committed to staying faithful until my days on earth are over, not settling for “good enough” the way I did for 20 years.

Today, I pray that when that day comes, I am able to confidently repeat Paul’s words to Timothy, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”

In peace,

~Juan