Training Your Heart to Love Like Christ
Two weeks ago I was talking about how we are all going to die, and last week we heard from Mark Schisler and Steve Bergmeier about the four last things, death, judgment, heaven, or hell. Today, I thought we could start with something a little bit more uplifting. The peak of your love, God's loving you so well that your heart is being conformed to the will of God, that you love like him, that peak is still in the future. Training for your heart is now.
MC: Adam Hohn
Parochial Vicar: Tyler Arens
Presenter: Joseph Gruber
Deacon: Rick Freedberg
Brought to you By: The Knights of Columbus
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participantOne:(659-26540): Lord, please be with us this morning. Let all the conversations and the things that we learned be fruitful and continue to grow in our faith in this time of life. As we pray, our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. Forgive us our trespasses.
participantOne:(26800-49060): as we forgive those who trespass against us, and lead us not into temptation. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Welcome to the third Saturday for CORE in the month of March. Is this anyone's first time being at CORE? Yeah, I've got two. Welcome, welcome. That's amazing.
participantOne:(54940-82340): Yeah, so we're supposed to be inviting men next week is the breakfast at the Manor House. That's at 7 o'clock, Cascade Manor House. Also next week is the men's conference put on the Diocese of Lansing, and that's over at Eastern Michigan University in the George Urban Event Center there. That's where they play basketball. So does anyone else have any other announcements?
participantOne:(82560-108480): I know Phil Berkmeyer mentioned that Leo Reni's funeral is today. It's at Fatima. I looked through five different obituaries. I couldn't find a time. 11 o'clock. 11 o'clock. 1030 Rotary. Perfect. Perfect. Any other announcements of things going on in the area? Joseph, things going on Sunday?
participantOne:(109080-134700): If anybody is married and wants to have a more amazing marriage, my wife and I are doing a virtual workshop tomorrow night. You can talk to me afterward if you're interested. Also, Lumen has got Wizard of Oz tonight and tomorrow. Oh. Went there last night, a lot of fun. Awesome. That's amazing. That's good stuff.
participantOne:(134980-161560): All right, so before I bring up our speaker, as we're continuing on this theme of Lent, for those who don't know, I am Adam Hahn. I attend the MC, most of the core meetings here, but I'm also the field agent for Knights of Columbus here in Jackson, and I've been talking about different fraternal benefits. So this week I wanted to focus on orphan benefits
participantOne:(161800-183200): So if you have children and you and your wife pass away, the Knights of Columbus will provide a monthly benefit to those kids up until they're age 18. And they will also offer scholarships for those kids when they attend school at the collegiate level.
participantOne:(183660-208700): And then there's also for kids that want to go to Catholic University or college, they can also apply for scholarships that are provided by the Knights of Columbus, but only for Catholic College and University. So that's also available to your children if they're thinking about going to Catholic College, University, expanding their minds, that is also available to them.
participantOne:(208480-239519): Without further ado, I'd like to welcome up our speaker for most of the week's Joseph Gruber. Good morning. Anyone mind if we pray again? I would love to. Thank you. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Direct, O Lord, our actions by thy holy inspiration, and carry them on by thy gracious assistance, that every word and work of ours may begin in thee, and by thee be happily ended. Amen.
participantOne:(239800-271200): in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. If you would, at the end of each table there are pieces of paper. There's one table that's already passed out paper. If you could pass out paper and pens. Looks like there's one table out yonder that is without paper or pen. Adam, could you deliver paper and pens to that far, far table? Thank you. So the past two weeks, as an appropriately Lenten sort of theme, we've been thinking about death.
participantOne:(271840-302640): Two weeks ago I was talking about how we are all going to die, and last week we heard from Mark Schisler and Steve Bergmeier about the four last things, death, judgment, heaven, or hell. Today, I thought we could start with something a little bit more uplifting. If you would, at the top of your page, write down the date of your birth. Write down the date of your birth.
participantOne:(303000-349640): So for me that's 10-02-1986, but for whoever you are, the date of your birth. I know most of us don't remember the actual day itself, but the date you should have in mind. Everybody got that? Great. Right underneath of that, directly underneath of that, I would like you to write today's date. Today is March 15th, 2025.
participantOne:(350420-379320): We started thinking about your birth, but now we're going to launch into death, because underneath of that, gentlemen, I would like you to write your obituary, as if you were to die today. Let's say the ceiling of St. Mary's, or the Seat Hall, is actually structurally unsound, and the sound of my voice is just enough to tip the scales in a few moments. We'll all be trapped, but in front of each one of us will be a draft of our own obituary.
participantOne:(379700-411940): which all of our loved ones will be greatly appreciative of. So obituaries commonly have where you are from, where you've lived, what you've done, and who has survived you. So take about five minutes and draft your own obituaries. If today was the day that you died. You might want to speak a little bit softer. No. The ceiling is coming down momentarily. There is urgency to this. Get it done.
participantOne:(413280-942240): I didn't see a half. I think I'll survive. All right, do people need more time? I'm going to hold the ceiling up for just a minute, but then we're going to move on because there's more to this morning, okay?
participantOne:(944640-1005880): Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh.
participantOne:(1007959-1047180): All right.
participantOne:(1047500-1084720): Here I am walking around the boundaries of the United States. All right gentlemen, it seems like people are ramped up. How do you feel knowing that today you might die? Great. Anyone looking at their obituary and feeling like they wish it could be more or different? One or two people willing to raise their hand? Okay.
participantOne:(1086200-1123880): Turn your piece of paper over. At the top of the page, write the date of your birth. Again. If you forget, turn the paper back over to remind yourself. Yeah, if you could also put your social security number and routing number and account number, I would appreciate that, because I'm collecting all these at the end. No, these are just for you. These are just for you. You can burn them after we're done. That's fine.
participantOne:(1124840-1157500): Alright, so you wrote the date of your birth at the top of the back. Right under that, write March 15th, 2045. Let's say for the sake of the argument that the ceiling holds. For now. For now. And 20 years from now is when we all go. We're all back here for a 20 year reunion and the ceiling goes down again.
participantOne:(1157860-1182760): I'd like you to write your obituary as if you lived another 20 years. And things I want you to keep in mind as you're writing this. Any of you, were any of you a Boy Scout? I was not. But one thing that I heard about Boy Scouts, and hopefully all of you lived up to this, is that the goal was to always leave the campground better than when you found it.
participantOne:(1183000-1212360): Is that true? Yes. Okay. As you're writing this obituary, just on a natural level, imagine you have as a guiding principle you want to leave this world better than you found it. And then you have 20 years to live that out. So that's on the natural level, that you've got 20 years with that as part of your mission. On the supernatural level, I would like you to imagine what your obituary would look like 20 years from now.
participantOne:(1212620-1243220): If you lived each day knowing that God loved you and that God has a mission for you. And that that mission is intimately tied up with, on the other side of your paper, all those who survived you today. Plus anyone and everyone else that you meet. That God loves you, which means that his mission is for you.
participantOne:(1244060-1268820): in a way that will shape your heart over the course of the next 20 years. People talk about peaking in high school, that when they were a high school athlete, that's where they were the peak of their life. Or they talk about peaking in their 20s, that they've done the most, that they've seen the most. Or peaking by the age of 40, that they have accomplished the most, and everything is downhill. In the next 20 years,
participantOne:(1269560-1284640): I want you to imagine what if the peak of love was still before you. That God is calling you to a mission of love with the height that you have not yet reached. And write your obituary.
participantOne:(1284879-1311160): as if you lived another 20 years. For those of us who are on the younger side, 20 years might seem like not enough. Sorry. You're not even guaranteed that 20 years. And for some of those on the slightly more seasoned side, 20 years might sound like a nightmare. But again, God loves you, and he has a mission for you. All right, I'll give you some time to write your obituary as if you lived another 20 years.
participantOne:(1314960-1362440): Thank you.
participantOne:(1362860-1644960): Does anyone need more time? Yes. I'll just stick to my first line. He died the king's good servant, but God's first. Adam, how many minutes? I can't hold it. I can't touch it. Wow. See? Yes.
participantOne:(1645900-1686380): Brandon gets it. Nobody doesn't get it, Adam. That's not... That's not... Adam, tell Mike what you just told him. I'll tell you the last line of it. So, this is 20 years. I'm holding him as a candidate.
participantOne:(1687500-1718440): I'd say he was trying to be able to play very seriously. However, we will be nice to you about how you're going to die and you need to start with this thing. No, you guys carry that speech. So on the other one, his passing will leave an impact on the community that may never survive. You don't miss him. I mean, if this trip goes down. Yeah, it costs a lot of money to lose a brother. Yeah.
participantOne:(1718740-1748640): All right, it looks like most guys are wrapping up. Gentlemen, we don't know how much time is left. As we've mentioned both last week and the week before, we know that there is this moment now and we know that there's the hour of our death.
participantOne:(1749000-1785680): and we know that now is approaching the hour of our death. The space between the two, we do not know. As a challenge to train our hearts, like I said, the peak of your love, God's loving you so well that your heart is being conformed to the will of God, that you love like him, that peak is still in the future. Training for your heart is now. So to train your heart, in a corner of your piece of paper, I want you to write three names.
participantOne:(1786080-1823000): men you know in Jackson who either are Catholic and not practicing, are not Catholic or aren't even Christian, write down three names of men that you have phone numbers of or email addresses of or that you see with some regularity. Write down the names of those three men. Everybody writing? I see some people not writing. If you don't know three men, we should talk after this.
participantOne:(1823740-1880760): They might be nervous, yeah. Because you don't know what I'm going to say. So again, men who either aren't Catholic or aren't practicing or aren't even Christian, that you know that are in Jackson, that you have some way of reaching. Everybody have three names? Not yet? All right, I'll tell you the challenge. The challenge is, today, reach out to them.
participantOne:(1881040-1908360): and let them know that you're going to be at Cascades Manor a week from today at 7 a.m. for a free breakfast, and that you'd love to see them there. That's the challenge. So not practicing Catholic, not Catholic, not Christian, men that you can reach, let them know there's a free breakfast that you're going to.
participantOne:(1908820-1935600): You'd love to see them there. You'd love to sit with them. I invited a couple of my neighbors a couple months ago, and they both came, and they sat at opposite ends of the room, and so I was hopping back and forth between the two tables. Hopefully I can do a better job this coming week in corralling the people I invite to the same table. So the nature of the challenge is...
participantOne:(1936120-1967840): that it's up to you whether or not you do it. Nobody's grading you, nobody's testing you, but I am saying that if you want your heart to be tested, you will have to reach out beyond yourself and beyond what's comfortable. And gentlemen, we're providing the free breakfast. We're providing the company of other men around you here. You have an opportunity to love men in a way that maybe you haven't.
participantOne:(1969720-1994180): and maybe in a way that will transform your life and theirs. Okay, so we reflected on death as if it were today. We reflected on death as if it were 20 years from now. And I gave you a challenge to help grow your heart so you can actually become the man that you're called to be. Let's take a moment. It is Lent.
participantOne:(1994400-2021340): Let us pray the fourth sorrowful mystery. Why? Because I was praying the rosary on my way in, and that's where I stopped. So, yeah, yeah. It's like a two to three decade drive from my house to here. So, that's why we're going to do it, to continue my rosary. All right. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
participantOne:(2021560-2061960): The fourth sorrowful mystery is the carrying of the cross by Jesus. Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
participantOne:(2066820-2110020): Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. The Lord is with thee. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. The Lord is with thee.
participantOne:(2110800-2149660): Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. The Lord be with you. Amen. Pray for us. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. The Lord be with you. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
participantOne:(2154540-2187560): Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. Amen. O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell. Lead all souls to heaven, especially those in most need of thy mercy. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Alright, so take a couple minutes to refill on coffee, or donuts, or cupcakes, or what like, or whatever. Then you can gather in small groups in the back for some discussion. Thanks, Jim.
