Who Will Save The Lost Sheep?

You know the story. St. Monica spent her life praying for the conversion of her mother-in-law, husband and son. For 30+ years, she chased after their souls- especially Augustine- in the hopes of saving them. And she eventually succeeded with the advice of St. Ambrose and the will of God.

Close your eyes for a moment and I want you to think about your prodigals, think about where they took a turn away from the Church, think about what you did wrong or rather, what you could have done better/differently. Open your eyes when you've got your answer. Hold onto that for a minute. We'll come back to it.

"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might. And these words which I command you this day shall be upon your heart; and you shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. And you shall bind them as a sign upon your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. And you shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates." –Deuteronomy 6:5-9

^ That's our job, your job. That's what you can do.. surround yourself and your home with His love, with His Word. The rest… the heart, the circumstance, the timing… that's up to Him. 

I think about the “Good” Thief… St. Matthew… St. Paul…. 

God often permits wandering as part of some very special journeys toward salvation. And, just like Paul in the shipwreck on his way to Rome, that boat had to wreck for people to be saved. My child’s wreck might be the thing that leads them to the place needed for restoration with the Lord.

Romans 6 reminds me that even when we were sinners, Christ died for us. 

1 Peter 5 tells me to release myself from carrying my child’s burdens and lay those burdens with Jesus.

And my old friend, Father Frank would tell me to repeat “Jesus, I trust in You. Jesus, I trust in You. Jesus, I trust in You.”

Each night, I ask certain Angels and Saints to bless and pray for our family. I use the meanest prayer you could imagine. “...that each of them, in God’s own perfect timing will come to know, love and serve Our Lord Jesus Christ as their personal savior, no matter what it takes. And I mean that. No matter what it takes.

The parable of the Good Samaritan lets me know that someone could speak into my child’s life, and I may never know. When I think about that possibility, another Good Samaritan comes to mind... St. Ambrose. 

While his mother prayed for decades, it was actually St. Ambrose, through his teachings and mentoring, who is said to have converted Augustine. 

God has amazing plans for all of us and for our loved ones.

So, how did you answer the question? What did you do wrong? Not. One. Thing. To think otherwise is vanity. God puts before each person the challenges he/she needs to overcome, the lessons they need to learn to develop the skills, the courage, the heart to be who He made them to be, the discipleship He has mapped out for them.

St. Augustine himself said, “There is no Saint without a past and no sinner without a future.”

 Our little brains and short lives cannot possibly turn all knobs in the directions He wants them to go. 

We are the good Catholics, are we not? The good and pious example to the world and to our prodigals. Or are we prodigals, too, in our own way? They will know we are Christians by our love, right? Most importantly, we follow Christ as He specified: by taking up our own cross. Well, perhaps the pain and angst we carry for our prodigals is our cross. If we want to be His disciples, we must "take up" our cross. But it is not just the wood of the cross, the weight of the cross. It is the weight of the cross as it presses on, scrapes upon, aggravates our wounds. It's the betrayal, the persecution, mortification, the abandonment, the denials. It's falling again and again and getting back up, following where He leads and accepting help when we are weakest. It's the thorns, the nails, the forsakenness, the thirst, the surrender.

Remember that in the story of the Prodigal son, 

While he was still a long way off, his father caught sight of him, and was filled with compassion. He ran to his son, embraced him and kissed him. 

Give God His berth, prevail in your steady devotion, but get out of the way and let Him work. Listen for your calling, your part in His plan. It very likely is not to save your own. But there will be Monicas and Augustines He brings your way…. 

Feeling helpless as you see your loved ones' spiritual lives being tossed about on a raging sea? Attach your intentions to as many things as possible . Sanctuary candle? Mass dedications? Tent at Parish Picnic? Events where help is needed/families welcome to help or just enjoy? Put an intentions box at the back of your church... offer to pray for the lost sheep of your fellow parishioners. St. Ambrose told St. Monica to talk less to Augustine about God and talk more to God about Augustine. Pray.

Every time you pray you who increase every other family's prayers exponentially. Now, you are not one voice, you are 5 or 15 or 25 or hundreds.

My pastor tells me that prodigals are the number one issue that parents/grandparents want to talk to him about. Help him help them. Get cards printed for your priest to give to families who need St. Monica.

Augustine also wrote:
“Our Lord said: ‘No one can come to Me unless the Father Who sent Me draws that person.’ This is a great commendation of grace! Do not make judgments about whom God draws and whom He does not draw, unless you wish to fall into error. Accept this once and for all, and understand it: you are not yet drawn to God? Pray that you may be drawn! (Sermon on John 26, 2) 

So, hearts are turned in God's own time

-your intercession is a support, not an insta-cure

-we're friends, not therapists... we bring tissues, not magic

and we pray…

I ask the Holy Family, and Sts. Anne & Joachim, and Sts. Macrina the Elder & Monica and Sts. Ambrose & Augustine to bless and pray for each one who reads this- that you may find peace and that your prodigals may find Christ, no matter what it takes.