If you have been Catholic long enough, you have seen the annual Catholic version of the military draft. Before or after Mass, someone gets up and announces that we are in dire need of catechists, or that the parish festival is a week away and we have half the volunteers we need. A few people are guilted into helping. A few more are nagged. A few just want the announcements to stop.

I had a plan to exponentially grow the ministry I was running, and I was excited and hopeful. It was discerned out of real time in prayer and had the blessing of my pastor. The plan involved something we had never done before - fundraising millions. So my pastor and I went to talk to the bishop, a good man we both had a good relationship with. He shot the plan down by the end of the meeting....

Have you ever drifted off course in your life? Maybe we let our prayer life slip a bit. We let bad habits creep in and good ones go. We wait too long between Confessions. We haven’t been bold in sharing our faith with others in a long time. It happens to us all.

I’ve been reading lately about the wars the United States has fought in my lifetime — and the ones we have, by most honest measures, lost. The pattern is not what you would expect from the most powerful military the world has ever seen. It is not that we lacked resources. We had more of them than anyone. It is not that we lacked will or training. Our military is amazing and powerful. We lost because we kept fighting the wrong battles the wrong way.

Pick any secular leadership podcast. Read any book on how to be a great leader. Follow any leadership guru. They all agree on one thing: efficient scalability is the key to growth. If you're not familiar with the term, scalability is...

Working on parish renewal is a very good thing. It comes from an attitude of “ok isn’t ok” or “we can be better” or “God wants more”. These are gifts. We got here because the Lord stirred hearts to reach more souls. So, the conferences have been attended. The vision has been written down. Staff has been reorganized, sometimes more than once. There is real fruit in places - more reverent Masses, a handful of people whose faith has come alive, a few small groups that have actually become small communities. Let’s thank God for these gifts. Yet, in the quiet of our hearts, anyone honest knows...

We are all biased in some ways. I am biased toward the state of Texas but against Communism. I will argue for the merits of bourbon, books, and Jesus. I dislike beets, cheap yard equipment, and fire ants. It is natural to have preferences, instincts, and convictions — these are part of being a particular person in a particular place. But there is a difference between the bias we carry naturally and the bias we carry spiritually.

There is a quiet crisis unfolding in many of our parishes — not one of scandal or sudden collapse, but of slow, steady decline managed with remarkable efficiency. Year after year, the same programs are run, the same events are scheduled, the same classes are offered, and the same plans are dusted off and re-executed.

I know the title of this blog will get some people up in arms, but before you get the pitchforks out, bear with me a bit and I will try to make my argument. Before I get to the nitty-gritty, let’s examine a few facts:

Many Catholics traditionally do something like give up a favorite food, watch less TV, etc. for Lent. These are good ideas, but below are some more unique ones that we have crowd-sourced.

One of the realities of modern society is that we politicize nearly everything, including the Catholic Church. It seems we can’t approach any issue, have a conversation, or even think about reality itself without it all being invaded by political divides, arguments, and issues.

A parish built on the successes of past generations may actually be in trouble today because of those successes. That may sound strange—even ungrateful. After all, many of our parishes were built by faithful Catholics who sacrificed, prayed, and served generously. We inherited schools, buildings, programs, and traditions that once bore tremendous fruit. But the culture those systems were built for no longer exists.

I work with priests and bishops from all around the country, so I am blessed to have conversations that the average lay person doesn’t get. In fact, since I am no longer an institutional insider (since I work for our apostolate now), I am considered “safe” to talk to and therefore, I get to hear what is really happening with them. They ask for advice. They tell me their stories and struggles. They complain. They brag. I think many Catholics would be shocked by...

Some days I hate working out. I feel tired, maybe it is too hot, maybe I am just feeling lazy. Whatever the reason, I have to choose to overcome the obstacles I face, if I want to be healthy. I have been working out for decades and have the good habits of working out continually. So, imagine...

When our gaze shifts from Jesus and the purpose of the Church - we start to lose its mission of making disciples. Whenever the Church loses its mission people lose their faith.

During the current season of my life, we don’t go to our parish most Sundays. That is because my parents no longer drive and my wife and I drive them to Mass at their parish. Because my Mom is bothered by incense and has trouble moving far, we sit in the back row. I have a new appreciation of good preaching because...

Earlier this week I spoke to an OCIA (formerly RCIA) class of 170 or so college students at St. Mary’s Catholic Center at Texas A&M (the campus ministry I used to run). You might be amazed by that number, because it is a large class, but here is the real shocker - that is less than ½ of the students in the OCIA program! The class I spoke to started last spring (plus some other students joined after a summer intensive to catch them up). There is a larger class which met for the first time in a different room and they are at about 250 students, for a total of 420+ or so! The number of students could possibly go even higher.

I get tired of all the bad news, so it is time for some good news. In particular, some good news about the Catholic Church and what I am seeing and hearing. My desire is that this might help you become more aware of God’s active work in the world, through his Church and what is going on.

If you want to be a great evangelist, you have to be a saint. If you want to be a saint, you have to evangelize. This is because holiness and mission are inseparable.

Recently, I have been blessed to have some great professional moments, including: *Leading priest assemblies & convocations for dioceses. Generally, I am the only lay person in the room. *Coach / train / form Catholic professionals from across the country and internationally. *Have deep conversations with folks that are struggling and be able to help them. *Been an instrument God used to...