Mary, Did You Know?
Are You Seeking Citizenship in the Kingdom?
Photo By: Flickr/pumpkincat210
The more I learn and grow deeper into our Faith, the more I realize just how horrible a sinner I am, I’ve been, and how terribly I fail every day at being a true follower of Christ. The realization is pretty startling, and humbling. It has made me understand that most of us really don’t get just how difficult this journey is and how high is God’s expectation for us.. God has some extremely high standards for us to meet. Standards that I now comprehend are not humanly possible. That is why he established His Kingdom, the Church .
Jesus lived to establish a kingdom for us, because he knew we couldn’t achieve his ultimate goal of salvation alone, and without supernatural assistance. That is why he lived a life, and worked very hard during his lifetime setting up this Kingdom for us found only in the Catholic Church. We are failing our brothers and sisters in Christ by not making sure everyone knows this, citizenship in this Kingdom is Baptism, and then living a life devoted and loyal to that Kingdom and the King. You cannot be loyal to the King without serving and honoring His Kingdom. Anyone that comes to a true and non-sentimental knowledge of the Faith should come to this epiphany and value to the fullest the gifts that have been given to us and are found only in that Kingdom, the Catholic Church. There is no way that someone who truly understand this, would ever walk away. This understanding though only comes with effort, study, and prayer. It is why so many have found their way home to Rome and the Kingdom while searching for Christ’s Truth. Those who deny this Truth, are denying the best way to live life on this and the other side of eternity, a life in Christ's Kingdom both now and forever.
Every day, I have access to the greatest treasures the Kingdom has to offer me in the Sacraments, the Saints, and the fullness of what it means to be Catholic, and I need all these gifts desperately. Even with all these gifts I find it difficult at times to keep my head above water. I didn’t even realize my state of desperation until I really started to develop the habits these gifts require. I didn’t know that I was drowning. I bet most of us don’t.
Living a Christian life as a citizen of this eternal Kingdom is difficult and a constant struggle, and if we are not struggling, then we are not doing it right. Christ promised that the road to the Heavenly Kingdom would be narrow, and we discount that teaching. Most of us discard all he came to give us, and take for granted why He died. He died to save us from the very sins that most of us revel and glorify in during this life, because we assume that since God loves us, we are saved, we get a free ticket for admission to the Heavenly Kingdom. That is not so! Christ promised us crosses to bear in this life, if we live this life for him. That is our ticket to the Heaven Kingdom, and without that ticket, we may find ourselves in a very different place than we anticipated. It really is all about free will and our choices, and loving and trusting Jesus enough to do it His way. He is the King! He rules the Kingdom.
We can’t do it alone, we need the Church and we need the Sacraments. Those of us who walk away from all the Church has to offer, don’t get that, and the pride that gets in the way of that realization must be remedied. We are so blind. Christ came so that we could see, he healed the blind, so they could see, not just physically, but spiritually, we all need this type of spiritual healing every day, or we will fall, and the wide path is so alluring, and so tempting without the weapons we have at our disposal only through the Church, only through the KIngdom.
Tomorrow will be another day. I will try to keep my eyes focused on Him, my King, so I can navigate the waters and walk on them without sinking. I know that if I take my eyes off my King for even a moment, the waves are ready to engulf me. Thank you Jesus, for the Church Militant, Suffering and Triumphant and everything She has to offer, without her, I’m sure I couldn’t make it, can you?
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About the Author
I am a wife and mother of two grown sons. Although I am Cradle Catholic, I experienced a profound reversion to the True faith several years ago that motivated and inspired me to dive more deeply into an understanding of the Church and Her teachings, and why She has these teachings and where they come from. Surprisingly, for me, the more I read and discovered, the deeper my love of the Catholic Church and her teachings became. This certainly is a journey that doesn't end, and so as I uncover more amazing facts about our Faith and Church, I just can't help but want to share what I'm learning. So, I began writing for Catholic 365.
I have recently served for a year and a half as the Executive Director of a very active and busy Crisis Pregnancy Center on the West side of Cincinnati. God is so good and does answers prayers, even though He knows at times, we have no idea what we are asking for. The pro life cause is paramount to our times, I am so honored and humbled to have had the experience and opportunity to serve women and the unborn in this capacity! I am also very grateful to God, for allowing me to see for myself, that perhaps such a calling was not His long term plan for me. We go where God seeminly calls us, and for me, that was a return to corporate America. I currently work as a recruiter and sales onboarding specialist where I am helping a Franchising company open and support small businesses that serve seniors and the elderly, giving them opportunities to age in place and live thier final chapters with dignity. It is the other end of the pro life spectrum and such an amazing endeavor!
I love being able to share this great faith of ours and use this platform as a way to express my deep love and devotion to our Lord. We need each other, and this effort has truly become a wonderful way to connect with all of you- my brothers and sisters in Christ!
