Secondly I Loved how John the Baptist stood firm in his faith.. It takes me back to the biggest promise Which is to Love God with all my heart mind and soul. To pray constantly for God to increase my faith and give me the grace to Live & Die for him.

Recently, our Pastor, Fr. William (Bill) Byrne (Our Lady of Mercy, Potomac, Maryland) gave a homily in which he made clear that the members of our Church, and indeed all Christians, have a responsibility to share the “Good News”. The “Good News” is that God sent his son, Christ, into the world to die for all sinners so they might have eternal life. There is no question our actions and the way in which we live our life are relevant to this responsibility. He did not identify a particular method on how to share the “Good News”, for example, some may select good works, others may offer special prayers when necessary, and some may participate in small groups for the study of scripture and/or prayer, however, he did make clear that we could just not sit there and do nothing.

After further consideration of Father Bill’s homily, I decided to share my Daily Prayer with Family, Friends and others I come in contact with, when appropriate. In 1980, I began writing a Daily Prayer when I converted to the Catholic Church. Initially, the prayer was just a few paragraphs. The prayer is now two pages long and reflects my pilgrimage in Faith over the past 3+ decades. I would not characterize the prayer as anything special, but rather as the thoughts and reflections of someone who is very thankful for God’s gifts of Christ and the Holy Spirit, as well as many blessings in life.

For several decades, I have believed that a person’s foundation for life rests upon three basic pillars: Faith, Family and Friends. If these pillars are in good shape, I believe a person has a very good chance to make it through a continuous transition of wonderful and/or difficult times that comprise all the various elements of life, for example, see “Abandonment to Divine Providence” by Father J.P. de Caussade, S.J.. If these pillars are not in good shape, a person may find it very difficult to deal with the twists, turns and challenges that frequently occur in life.

In brief, I was raised in the Methodist Church and have many warm, wonderful memories of vacation Bible school and youth programs. After my wife and I were married in 1966, I decided to become a member of the Catholic Church in 1980 after much reflection of Catholic theology, history and traditions. In 1980, Father Tom Wells, Pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes (Bethesda, Maryland) recommended that I try daily Mass, and I have. It is a wonderful way to start the day and learn of God’s plan for the day.