Don't Eat the Cheetos*

A new study shows that infant baptisms in the Catholic Church have been declining year by year along with the birth rate in the U.S.

When life in the womb is rejected, is it surprising that life in the spirit gets rejected also?  It's time for a new evangelization. 

It's not a coincidence that you are alive right now - God has placed you here at this moment in time to receive his grace and change the world.  God has called you by name to be a builder of the new evangelization.  I think of other moments in history when 'new evangelizations' were needed and the saints that stepped up and answered the call to get in the mud and dirt and start laying the foundations and their followers who began putting on the mortar and bricks to rebuild the Church - people like St. Francis, who literally heard God say to him, "Rebuild my Church", St. Dominic, St. Ignatius, St. Teresa of Avila, St. John of the Cross, etc., etc.  Now it's your time and God is calling you.  It's time to let go of the lure of mediocrity and tell comfort that you weren't made to be comfortable.  God is completely, totally, head over heels enamored by you - that's why you're here and why you feel like there is something more to life than just sitting around eating cheetos* and watching Jersey Shore. This is how 'enamored' is defined:

en·am·or

1. to fill or inflame with love
2. to charm or captivate.

God is INFLAMED with love of you!  How much He wants you to be who He made you to be!  We have so utterly downplayed what it means to be human that we don't even expect anyone, especially ourselves, to live lives of holiness and greatness anymore - and I'm not necessarily talking about becoming president or CEO of anything - I'm talking about listening to the voice of God and the promptings of the Holy Spirit to be fully human and make a gift of yourself everyday - to love to the utmost EVERY day.  This is the call of the new evangelization - to become who you are.  Bl. JPII believed that you have the capability of becoming the greatest saints of the Church.  You're probably thinking that that's crazy, but let me remind you of the words of Jesus, "What is impossible with men, is possible with God." (Lk 18:27).  You were made for this moment in history to proclaim the new evangelization, to proclaim Jesus Christ, to a world desperately in need of Him.  Do not settle for the cheetos*.  They're fake and they don't satisfy.  Rise up and let the love of God cast out all your fear.  Sustained by the Eucharist and led by the Holy Spirit in the will of the Father,  you have absolutely nothing to fear.  All that is ahead of you is beauty.  You, saint of the third millenium, do not doubt the one God or the greatness to which He has called you.  "Young people of every continent, do not be afraid to be the saints of the third millenium!" (Bl. JPII)

Place all your trust in Him and be not afraid to take the leap of faith:

*No disrepect to the makers of Cheetos - I actually find them to be quite delicious but this is obviously just an analogy :)