"The Good News" Talk

[Specter]

Here's my talk for a retreat in two weeks that I finished writing after about four heavy writing sessions while at Adoration. I had my friend Max look over it, and then gave it to the group tonight, and they tended to like it. I didn't expect to get emotional for the last story like I did, but it happened.[quote]This is a topic that I am thinking not many of you will want to pay close attention to.  In fact, I think the very idea of this either seems boring, may never have crossed your mind, or that you are scared of it.  Afraid of what it might mean.  This scares us, and yet represents the very meaning of our lives.

The topic is Holiness.  For most of us, this scares us because we are afraid that we’ll have to give up being who we are.  That we’ll simply cease to be ourselves.  This is both true and false.

Dying to yourself is a very hard thing to do.  It means putting all others before yourself.  Making sure that everyone elses needs are met before your own.  It means giving up doing the things that you know are wrong, and taking ownership for your sins.  Doing this can be like giving up a piece of yourself.  But what awaits you on the other side is a freedom like no other.  A freedom, not to do whatever you want, but to allow God to love you and to truly guide your life.  You may be giving up a lifestyle, and that is a hard thing to do, but only when you do, will you begin to understand how much emotional baggage will be removed with every step.

Sin effects us all negatively.  We are the body of Christ.

What does it mean to be Holy?

Holiness can be summed up as a method of reaching for God.

We are all, each one of us, called to be holy.  To be a child of God.  It is this same calling that brought you all here, as Liz told us last night.  It is the same calling to prayer as Z told us and the same calling that told us that God does not make junk, as Jill told us.

Now that we’ve got most of the pieces, we need to move forward from there.  To understand not only what we need but why we need it, and why we even have it.  Where does this need to be holy even come from and why is it so important?  God.  He wants us to be holy.  This doesn’t mean “no fun” however.  God is well aware of our need for fun things.  He created us that way.

Sin.  It is the extreme opposite of holiness.  When you choose to sin, you are telling God, “You know what, God?  I know what you want for me and how I should live my life, but I’d like to think that I’m smarter than you.  I’ve got this under control, and I’d like to do this without your help.”

We are here to serve God, NOT OURSELVES! (REPEAT)

What does sin do?  It creates a wall of separation between us and God.  It’s like this:

Picture yourself in a very beautiful valley.  A paradise.  Beside you stands Jesus.  Suddenly, up above, clouds begin to fill the sky.  It then begins to rain.  It starts as a light drizzle, not really effecting much at the beginning, but the rains pick up, eventually creating a stream, and before you know it, there is a raging river.  You are on one side, God is on the other.  Jesus builds a path across, a solid foundation of rocks that will get you across to the other side.  As you cross the river, you are going to slip and you are going to fall, but those rocks are solid and strong.  You can make an effort to get back on them, to stand up, reach your hands up into the air and praise God, and ask for His forgiveness, and to carry on, minding your footing as you make your way through this life.  The goal is the other side.  The goal is heaven.

Too many of us are just floating in the river, or will be swept off of the path by sin, or even by other people convincing us that this one sin is okay, that you can do this just one time.  But you can’t.  That one time was the first few drops of rain that fell from the clouds.  No, that isn’t much, but it makes it easier the next time, and the next, to fall harder and worse.  It becomes an addiction.  There was a boy who asked his mother, how much does a snow flake weigh? And she replied that they weigh nothing.  And as the snow piled up on a tree, and a branch broke, he asked his mother again, how much does a snowflake weigh?  It is the same with sin.  Sure, one small sin may not do much damage, but enough of that one sin can break you.

But it is not the end.  You can overcome this.  There is only one way to get out of this trap that is sin.  It is God’s greatest sacrifice for us.  The one foretold many times in the scriptures.

Now, close our eyes, as we witness the event in a way that we may never have before.

The path was clear, but on either side many people scorned my name.  I looked throughout the crowds for one friendly face, one person that would make the burden of my sacrifice worth it all.  Every face was worth it, but here and now, they didn’t understand.  How could they not see that I am doing this for them?  That this must be done?  I am brought before Pilot.  He pleads with the crowd, but they will not listen.

The soldiers are now shackling my wrists to a post.  They do not know what it is they are doing to me.  They proceed to whip me, tearing at my flesh.  Every lash, every cut, every drop of blood was lost that day for you and for all.  Do you not see how much that I love you?  Your sins are marking up my body with every stinging blow.  They continue to whip me, and every time, the wind is knocked out of me and my whole body quakes.  Every time it becomes more and more difficult to stand.  I could put an end to this at any moment, but then I remember you.  I think of your face, and my love for you.  Now the soldiers are satisfied with the whipping.  They pick up different whips now.  They are whips with nine cords that contain shards of glass and metal, that cause them to stick to whatever they touch.  They violently lash my back.  When they are finished, they remove one shackle.  They roll me onto me onto my back, and begin anew.  This time my chest is the target.  The pain is so great, so much, but I tell myself that it is worth this, so that you can be free.  The pain is never ceasing.  My back was beaten, so brutally.

Now I am dragged away.  Later the soldiers mock me.  They have created a crown of thorns and beat it onto my head.  They wrap me in a purple cloak, and they mock me.  They rip the cloak from my body, and my wounds reopen.

I am brought again before Pilot, and he presents me before the crowd.  The crowd sees me, and wants me Crucified.  Now a cross is laid upon my back.  The road ahead of me, the road to calvary, is not smooth, but full of jagged rocks.  As I look around, I see no face to comfort me.  This is the last road that I will walk this day.  The cross gets heavier with every step.  It scrapes at my wounds on my back.  I fall, the soldiers whip me.  The crowds spit on me.  I get up, put the cross upon my back, and carry on.  The harsh road cuts my feet.  I am whipped as I walk.  I fall again, and my mother, Mary, sees me.  She rushes to my side, wanting to do anything for me, she also knows the prophecy.  I tell her, “Behold, I make all things new.”  I am fulfilling the covenant.  I carry on, as my mother watches, helpless, wanting to end the pain.  Upon my next fall, a man named Simon is forced to help me carry my cross.  We reach the summit together.

They lay the cross on the ground and begin to drive nails into my hands, and through the cross.  After the first nail, my other hand won’t reach the other hole in the cross.  A soldier takes my arm and ties a rope around it.  He then pulls, dislocating my shoulder, so my hand can reach.  They put my feet together and hammer them in place.

They raise the cross up, and mock me as I hang there.  I do this for them and I do this for you.  I release my spirit to God, sealing the purpose of my life, the reason I was born.  A single drop, a tear from heaven, falls to the ground.

It is with this act that we have been granted access to heaven.  It was by the grace of God that we have this chance.

Jesus didn’t just come to save us and leave us.  He sent the Holy Spirit to guide us, and gave us the gift of Himself in the Eucharist!  He offers this freely and daily we must answer His call with a resounding YES!  Yes, Lord, I will give my life to you, I will dedicate this day and all days to you!

The Passion meditation that I have just read for you is just one facet of the depth of the Bible.  The Bible is not just a nice story about Jesus.  It is full of true stories of miracles, wars, plagues, and more.  It is the history of the world.

It is said that within a few seconds, you have already judged someone.  The Bible tells us not to judge others, for you to will be judged.  The Bible holds within many teachings about criticism, gossip, impatience, anger, pride.  But also love, self-sacrifice, and selflessness.

I strive to put others before myself, in all things.  If you’ve got a problem, I’ll listen.  I will be your friend through thick and thin.  All that I ask is openness and honesty, and that you are willing to listen when I come to you with a problem.

The Bible is the living word of God.  Sure it’s 2000 years old, and a lot of it even older, but there is a reason that it has stood the test of time.  In every generation, the Bible has remained the most relevant book in the world.  It is the best selling book of all-time, and also one of the most stolen books.  We must remember to treat the word of God with reverence!  It is a sacred book!  Right now, you guys are going to be given bibles.  Treat them well, us them often.  Read them daily.

The road to holiness involves prayer, forgiveness, and striving to remove sin from our lives.  Each place that Jesus bled from cleanses us of our sins.  Daily we must seek this forgiveness.  The word of God is a place that you can turn to in times of need.  And the Holy Eucharist will help you to grow closer.

The Word of God is imprinted in our hearts.  Do you ever find yourself going to the fridge, again and again, even though you aren’t hungry?  Take this time to open up the Bible, or to pray.

My friend Max lost his Bible in the 4th grade.  Last sumer he went to the adoration chapel at St. Isidore.  He picked up a random bible that was sitting next to him, and the inside cover had his name written on it.

My friend Andrea Caruso loves God with all of her heart.  She is very cool and my friend Tony’s little sister.  She knew the bible and Jesus and would frequently pray.  She loves talking about crazy things.  She once called me and we spent fifteen minutes talking about velcro.  At the age of 17 she was in heavy chemotherapy.  She had leukemia.  Two years ago, she died.  She had planned her funeral.

We never know when our time here will be up, so start now, running for holiness, praying, and reading the Bible.

Thank you.

-Paul Martin, 2005[/quote]

[Specter]

Any comments? Suggestions? Substitutions, exchanges or refunds?

[Spiritual_Arsonist]

Cool talk. Dopeness.

[phatcatholic]

specter.......................excellent talk, well catered to your audience. i found a few spelling mistakes, but since its a talk, those are irrelevant. as far as content goes, i do have one suggestion. one thing you may wish to do in order to further emphasize the relevance of the Bible in nurturing personal holiness would be to quote some scripture verses throughout your talk. there are a wide variety you could use. i'll quote a little bit from your talk and then give the relevant scripture reference. other verses could be used as well:



"The topic is Holiness. For most of us, this scares us. [color=red]John 3:20 says that those who do evil actually [i]hate [/i]the light![/color] We are afraid that we’ll have to give up being who we are. That we’ll simply cease to be ourselves. This is both true and false."

"Doing this can be like giving up a piece of yourself. But what awaits you on the other side is a freedom like no other. [color=red]Jesus says in John 8 that anyone who comits a sin is a slave to sin.....but He can give us freedom,[/color] a freedom, not to do whatever you want, but to allow God to love you and to truly guide your life."

"Sin effects us all negatively. We are the body of Christ. [color=red]1 Cor 12:26 says that 'If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.'[/color] "

"God. He wants us to be holy. [color=red]1 Cor 1:2 says that all those who call on the name of the Lord are called to be saints.[/color] This doesn’t mean “no fun” however."

"We are here to serve God, NOT OURSELVES! (REPEAT) [color=red]This is what John the Baptist meant when he said, 'He must increase, but i must decrease'[/color] "

"Jesus didn’t just come to save us and leave us. He sent the Holy Spirit to guide us, and gave us the gift of Himself in the Eucharist! [color=red]When Jesus tried to explain this gift of himself to the people, many of them scoffed and walked away from Him. We must not do that. Instead, we should follow Peter's example. When Jesus asked the disciples, 'do you also wish to go away?' what did Peter say? Do you all remember? He said, 'Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life; and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God' ". Jesus offers himself[/color] freely and daily. [color=red]Like Peter[/color] we must answer His call with a resounding YES! Yes, Lord, I will give my life to you, I will dedicate this day and all days to you!"



i hope that helps

pax christi,
phatcatholic

[Specter]

Phatcatholic, truly you are Phat! Thank you so much for that! That gives the talk the PUNCH it needed to knock it through the roof! I'm going to add those into it, and then go over it a few more times so I can have the basics memorized before I do the talk. (When I speak, I generally use notecards with keywords written in big bold letters, so that I can go without reading from the paper. It makes it hard for me to quote from the Bible, but I'm going to try a new technique, where I have bullet points that are all specific reminders for me while I'm talking, and then have the bible verses right there. The meditation part, I'll just read.)

This is my third time doing this particular talk on the retreat and it's been totally different every time.

Once again, thank you very much.

[phatcatholic]

good luck bro...........let us know how it goes

[Specter]

The retreat is the 25th-27th. This talk will be the second talk on Saturday.

Friday night they hear the welcome talk, the Called by Name talk and the prayer talk. Just before mine is the "In His Image" talk (God does not make junk). And then is mine.

[phatcatholic]

sounds great i wish i could go

[Specter]

The talk went so well. It was incredible. There were few dry eyes left at the end. The worst part was that it was not recorded at all, and is only forever in the minds and hearts of those that heard it. It wasn't word for word from the written page, but became something more than that. Something incredible. It touched so many people and is unrepeatable. We didn't even video tape it.

[phatcatholic]

oh maaaaan, that's so awesome. i'm really happy for ya

[Specter]

Thanks! I could totally feel the Holy Spirit throughout, and it was the best speech I've ever given!

[corban711]

man! too bad i just saw this right now! i was gonna say it looked like a great talk Specter! glad it went well!

[Specter]

Thanks Corban! I was nervous all day until I did the talk, and when I was up there, I suddenly felt fine.