Giving up everything

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Does anyone know the family situations of the initial twelve apostles? Did they leave behind mothers, fathers, or children? Last night when I was praying the rosary, something hit me (I think it was during the presentation in the temple mystery): if Jesus was walking the earth right now, and asked me to be a disciple, would I be able to leave everyone and everything behind? If not, how could I classify the things that I couldn’t let go of as anything but evil? Would Jesus expect me to leave behind my wife and kids? Jesus left behind his mother. I know it says in the Gospel that “anyone who does not hate his mother, brother, father, sister, etc. is not worthy of being my disciple” or something like that. This is a dilemma that is weighing on my mind.
 
Peter had a wife the others I am unsure of and yes Peter left everything to follow Christ. In our time today being a disciple of Christ is spreading the message that he has given us through scripture and tradition. We are all called to be apostles and spread by our words and examples the teachings of Christ. Does he ask us to leave everyone not necessarily, but we leave the evils of the world to bring Christ to the world. Sometimes the things in this world can be very great temptations for others. ie: television trash, birth control, some of the church teachings, being a wishy washy Catholic.
 
We are called to be disciples in a way that is appropriate for our time and place. Here is a quote from Saint Francis:

“I have done what was mine to do; may Christ teach you what you are to do.”

🙂
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Hmm… spirit is at work here.

I was on retreat this weekend. We discussed the man who asked Christ what he must do to be saved. Christ tells him to follow the commandments and love his neighbor. The man states that he does these already. Christ then tells him to sell all his posessions and come follow him.

I always thought the man was stupid for not doing as Christ asked. This is the presence of God, why wouldn’t you follow him?

Well, on retreat I realized the Christ is still truly present in the blessed sacrament. And his answer still exists for us: Go. Sell all that you have, give it to the poor, and come follow me. Give up everything, and come follow Christ in the true presence. This was confirmed int he gospel reading. What was man, finding a pearl of great price, would not sell all that he has to purchase it?

Tomorrow I leave to spend a week with the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal. Pray the lord directs me in his will for me further.

Josh
 
God calls some people to give up everything. God calls other people to make the babies he wants.

Love is different from attachment. Love is wanting what is best for the person no matter what. Attachment is wanting to be with the person.

The joy you feel when someone dies is out of love. The pain you feel is out of attachment.

God calls us to love with pure love, but because we’re humans, we are incapable of loving without getting some attachment mixed in.

God asking you to give up everything would not mean flushing your kids down the toilet. God loves your kids, too. But if God said “listen, I’ll take care of the kids, I want you to go do something else for me” then you can do that something else while still loving your kids. It’s the ability to leave what you have but still love what you have. You might never see those kids again but as you wander through the streets of Calcutta you keep praying for them and you keep hoping they’re doing okay. You still want what’s best for them, but you don’t have to be around them.
 
We do know that Peter was married, we do not know if the other Apostles were married or not. We do not even know if Peter’s wife was still alive, he could have been a widower.

We do not know if they left everything or not, as we really do not find this information anywhere in the Bible.
 
We must trust the Lord that He will take care of our families while we are doing His work. This is the only place we will find comfort.

Melissa
 
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cardenio:
God calls some people to give up everything. God calls other people to make the babies he wants.

Love is different from attachment. Love is wanting what is best for the person no matter what. Attachment is wanting to be with the person.

The joy you feel when someone dies is out of love. The pain you feel is out of attachment.

God calls us to love with pure love, but because we’re humans, we are incapable of loving without getting some attachment mixed in.

God asking you to give up everything would not mean flushing your kids down the toilet. God loves your kids, too. But if God said “listen, I’ll take care of the kids, I want you to go do something else for me” then you can do that something else while still loving your kids. It’s the ability to leave what you have but still love what you have. You might never see those kids again but as you wander through the streets of Calcutta you keep praying for them and you keep hoping they’re doing okay. You still want what’s best for them, but you don’t have to be around them.
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Amen! Your only 16???
 
Yes, I’m 16. Why are people always surprised when they discover that people younger than them have half a brain?

I’ll be 17 in November if that helps.
 
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cardenio:
Yes, I’m 16. Why are people always surprised when they discover that people younger than them have half a brain?

I’ll be 17 in November if that helps.
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I didn’t intend it as an insult. Sorry if it came across that way. It was more that I was thinking, “Wow, these are some things I didn’t realize until recently. I wish I could have realized them when I was 16, my life would have ended up much happier.” I meant it as a compliment. I thought it was a wonderful post. God bless you. You are very fortunate to realize these things at such a young age. You will be able to accomplish much more with the time you have been given because of it.
 
Well, letsee, when I was in my 20’s I had darn near gave up everything. Then God started giving me stuff.

Gave me a wife.
Gave me kids.
Gave me a house
Gave me a paycheck

It’s like an endless battle, the more I give up, He keeps dumping twice as much stuff on me!
 
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threej_lc:
Hmm… spirit is at work here.

I was on retreat this weekend. We discussed the man who asked Christ what he must do to be saved. Christ tells him to follow the commandments and love his neighbor. The man states that he does these already. Christ then tells him to sell all his posessions and come follow him.

I always thought the man was stupid for not doing as Christ asked. This is the presence of God, why wouldn’t you follow him?

Well, on retreat I realized the Christ is still truly present in the blessed sacrament. And his answer still exists for us: Go. Sell all that you have, give it to the poor, and come follow me. Give up everything, and come follow Christ in the true presence. This was confirmed int he gospel reading. What was man, finding a pearl of great price, would not sell all that he has to purchase it?

Tomorrow I leave to spend a week with the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal. Pray the lord directs me in his will for me further.

Josh
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Just wanted to jump in and wish you well, Josh!

Listen for the silence of Him - in your heart.
 
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cardenio:
God calls some people to give up everything. God calls other people to make the babies he wants.

Love is different from attachment. Love is wanting what is best for the person no matter what. Attachment is wanting to be with the person.

The joy you feel when someone dies is out of love. The pain you feel is out of attachment.

God calls us to love with pure love, but because we’re humans, we are incapable of loving without getting some attachment mixed in.

God asking you to give up everything would not mean flushing your kids down the toilet. God loves your kids, too. But if God said “listen, I’ll take care of the kids, I want you to go do something else for me” then you can do that something else while still loving your kids. It’s the ability to leave what you have but still love what you have. You might never see those kids again but as you wander through the streets of Calcutta you keep praying for them and you keep hoping they’re doing okay. You still want what’s best for them, but you don’t have to be around them.
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I think God can also call us to give up “everything and follow Him” through marriage and family life as well. There’s certainly a lot of sacrificing and doing without in many families and God calls us to give up our selfishness and small view of freedom for something bigger. He might very well be calling me to give up my beloved job, my freedom in going shopping at a moment’s notice if I wish, and the traveling I enjoy to have and raise a family. For me right now, that’s God asking me to give up everything and follow Him, just a slightly different picture than the way it’s presented in the Gospel. In the Gospel the disciples are being asked to leave everything behind, meaning their families - in my case, and in many others, He’s asking us to embrace family life and give up other parts of our lives that seem and are important.

Thanks to this thread, I am seeing that more clearly 🙂
 
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threej_lc:
Hmm… spirit is at work here.

I was on retreat this weekend. We discussed the man who asked Christ what he must do to be saved. Christ tells him to follow the commandments and love his neighbor. The man states that he does these already. Christ then tells him to sell all his posessions and come follow him.

I always thought the man was stupid for not doing as Christ asked. This is the presence of God, why wouldn’t you follow him?
Click to expand...
This Gospel passage also is speaking to me a lot lately as well. It is clear to me that Jesus calls us to give up the ways of the world and follow Him. This is why I have put a lot of thought into joining a religious order. I would be giving up a lot of what I love but in the end I would be happier because I would be picking up my cross and following Jesus and giving my life to Him.

This is the order I am trying to get information on…
saintleoabbey.org/default.asp
 
I think if you’re already married you’ve already given up yourself, as that’s what marriage is - the total losing of yourself to your spouse - so that you become one new identity for God.

If you have children, I can’t imagine God would call on you to leave your wife and children. Not that it’s not possible, just that’s it’s not likely, as the proper raising/protecting of children is very, very crucial to God.

It’s possible he’s calling you to become a Deacon, perhaps?
It just seems that if you’re married you’ve already responded to His call, as marriage is a vocation in itself and a convenant is entered into with God at the time. I just don’t see God asking you to walk away from the covenant He entered into with you and your wife.

Perhaps that’s why we don’t know anything about the married statuses of the apostles, and whether or not Peter’s wife was alive at the time or how old his children were (do we even know if he had any?).

I trust the Holy Spirit will be quite clear in His messages, as He was with Black Jaque and me, for that matter, as I fully intended on being single during my life, and yet - bam - I meet my husband, we’re engaged within 6 months, married within a year, still married 19 years later with two children and I’ve come closer in my relationship with the Trinity through the marriage and especially from parenting my children. It has crossed my mind at times what I would do if God takes my husband before me thus releasing me of my vows to him. But until that happens I’m taking my current vocational responsibilities quite seriously and finding satisfaction in them.
 
tossolul - I wasn’t insulted, I was more annoyed… and not just at you, at adults in general… for thinking teenagers don’t do anything except listen to illegally downloaded music and sleep all day. Yeah, teenagers are stupid, but everybody’s stupid in their own way. Thank you for the apology though; I forgive you.
 
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cardenio:
Yes, I’m 16. Why are people always surprised when they discover that people younger than them have half a brain?

I’ll be 17 in November if that helps.
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It has nothing to do with brain power, but with maturity.
Your parents have done a wonderful job with you. You are an intelligent and mature teenager. it gives us with young children, hope
 
Faustina - if you want to know how it happened… I’ve spent my entire life wanting to know everything and I’ve logicized everything down to nothing… it’s taken me farther than I care to be.

I have a chance, so I’m going to take it… When your kids become teenagers do this: listen to them. If they ask you if they can have a friend over next weekend, don’t say “yeah, we can get that sewn on after school.” Teenagers are more likely to take their parents seriously when their parents take them seriously. And if you try to flaunt your wonderful parenting skills, your teenager will start to resent it and say something (true or untrue, polite or impolite) that will scream “bad mother!” If you really are a good parent you shouldn’t need to show it off.

End of lecture. Sorry to vent. Back on topic…
 
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