How to Grow in Faith?

[UpUpAndAway]

I wouldn’t mind helping the pro-life ministry at my church (I already attend their monthly rosary), but my mother wouldn’t like it very much. My mother would probably not let me volunteer for them, even though I am a legal adult.

I will not touch the issue of parents “letting” their adult children do something that isn’t objectively evil or immoral. As an adult, you could, for example, put your foot down and insist she stay out of it, but that won’t likely do anything good for living conditions at home. File this under “just because you can doesn’t mean you should.”

In the interest of keeping the peace, is there some volunteer activity you can do that your mom wouldn’t object to? I can’t think of a single person who would find fault in volunteer work with the poor, for example.

 

[oldgraymare2]

Thanks for the replies! Unfortunately I have zero time to do volunteer work because I am in college.

I can, however, become a reader or usher. Would that count as serving God?

As already mentioned, this would absolutely count as serving God.

If you did want to do something like this, you could let them know at the parish what your schedule is like, so that you could then be put down on the schedule for when you are available.

The volunteers for these positions are put on a schedule anyway so that they know when they are going to serve–what Masses they are going to be scheduled at. They are usually on some kind of rotated schedule.

As for your other question regarding growing in faith, you can always ask God to increase your faith, and if you can, see if there are ways where you can vary your prayer life.

As someone already suggested, you can read about the lives of the saints. There are even “saints of the day” websites where you can sign up for free and receive a daily e-mail about the saint whose feast day it is.

You can vary your devotions if you start to get bored–maybe pray the Stations of the Cross for awhile, or pray some other prayers from a Catholic Prayer book/Catholic prayers online, or go to Mass early on Sat. or Sunday and just pray before the Blessed Sacrament before Mass begins–anything that you can think of that you would personally like to do, to make things different for yourself to enrich your own prayer life.

You can also find these prayers/devotions online, too, and print them out in case you want to carry them with you.

I am just putting these suggestions out there for you, to give you some ideas. You may come up with some of your own that you would like to do.

God bless you!

 

[njlisa]

I think an excellent thing for you to do is to post a prayer for another person on the prayer intentions forum – at least once a day. Make the prayer totally about the other person and his/her needs. Don’t mention yourself, just the prayer. Don’t get involved with the other posts. I think you’ll find yourself opening up to God and other people. And whatever you do, don’t announce what you’re doing. Just make it a private matter between you, God, and the person who need prayers. I know it’s really helped me.

This link will take you to a number of prayers. dosp.org/prayers-and-devotions/prayers/list-of-prayers/

Or just post an Our Father.

God bless you on your faith journey. Lisa

 

[Graceful_Lamb]

I have found that having a mentor has really helped. My mentor is very reverent and prayerful. My mentor and I also feel similarly or the same about a number of things concerning the Catholic faith.

Also, having a Spiritual Director has helped, too. It has been good to get clarification that I am going in the right direction or need to redirect, whatever the case may be.