A Word of Hope for Nov 4 by Fr. Jordan DeGuire, OP, a graduate student at Notre Dame in liturgical studies.
"Following Jesus takes everything. Are you ready?" In today's gospel, Jesus lays down some of His hardest conditions for discipleship: anyone who comes to Him without hating father and mother, without carrying his cross, without renouncing all his possessions, cannot be His disciple.
In this episode of A Word of Hope, we don't soften those words. To "hate" family doesn't mean to despise them, but it does mean we can't love them more than Christ. Most of us won't literally be executed, but we can't value our lives more than Jesus. To follow Him, to be a saint, is hard. It takes everything.
So who could possibly do this? That's where St. Paul's words to the Philippians change everything: "It is God who works in you both to desire and to work." The call doesn't start with us, and it doesn't end with us. God calls, God is the goal, and all along the way it is His grace that invites, encourages, and gives us the ability as we cooperate with Him.
All of this sits within the month of November, when the Church invites us, through All Saints Day and All Souls Day, to look at our lives from the perspective of eternity and ask: Where do I stand with God? Where do I still need to grow?
⏱️ IN THIS VIDEO
00:00 – Following Jesus takes everything
00:16 – November: seeing life from the perspective of eternity
00:22 – All Saints Day: those who gave everything to Christ
00:35 – All Souls Day: those who still need purification
00:49 – The question: Where do I stand with God?
01:01 – Today's gospel: Jesus' harsh conditions for discipleship
01:26 – What "hate" and "take up the cross" really mean
01:44 – Don't soften it: being a saint is hard
01:58 – Who could possibly live this out?
02:11 – St. Paul: "It is God who works in you"
02:42 – We're not passive: counting the cost
02:58 – It begins with God and ends with God
03:13 – Today's invitation: He is calling you to be a saint
🙏 TODAY'S INVITATION
God is inviting you to put Him first and to love Him above all else. He is inviting you to be a saint. How will you respond?
#AWordOfHope #CatholicFaith #Discipleship #Luke14 #BeASaint