We live in a time of great change. The Church has changed in many ways over the past century, and the world around us has changed even more. Sometimes these changes can leave us uncertain. Yet beneath all the changes there is something that never changes: our call to follow Jesus Christ.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Whether we are married or single, priests or religious, young or old, the most important question is always the same: How deeply are we living our relationship with Jesus?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n One Call, Many Ways<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The Church speaks of different vocations: lay people, priests, deacons, and religious. Each has its own role and mission. Yet all of these ways of life share the same foundation. Before we are anything else, we are disciples of Jesus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A priest is a disciple. A religious sister is a disciple. A married person is a disciple. A retired person is a disciple. We all begin with the same baptism and the same invitation from Jesus: “Come, follow me.” The goal of the Christian life is not simply to belong to the Church or fulfil religious duties. The goal is to grow into a deep friendship with Jesus and to share in God’s own life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The saints have described this in many ways. Some call it holiness. Others call it perfection, purity of heart, or the fullness of charity. Whatever words we use, it means allowing Jesus to shape our lives more and more each day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Heart Comes First<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The most important part of the Christian life is not what others see. It is what is happening in our hearts. St Augustine said: “It is in my heart that I am whatever I am.” A person may appear very religious on the outside and yet be far from Jesus within. Another person may quietly live a deep faith without attracting any attention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Jesus often warned against simply going through the motions. He criticised those who looked holy on the outside but whose hearts were not close to God. Christianity begins in the heart. It is there that we hear God’s call. It is there that we respond. Everything else flows from that response.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Learning to Let Jesus Be Our Treasure<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Jesus said: “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Every person treasures something. For some it may be money, success, possessions, reputation, or comfort. For Christians, our greatest treasure is Jesus himself. This does not mean that material things are bad. It means they must never take the place that belongs to<\/p>\n\n\n\n The more we love the Lord, the less we become attached to things that cannot truly satisfy us. We learn to live more simply and more freely. Christian poverty is not mainly about having less. It is about loving Jesus more. A heart that is filled with Jesus is not controlled by possessions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Learning to Say Yes to Jesus<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n One of the greatest challenges in life is letting go of our own way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n From the beginning of the Bible, human beings have struggled with this. Adam and Eve wanted things on their own terms. Throughout history, people have preferred their own plans to God’s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Yet the saints show us another path. Abraham trusted God’s call. Mary said: “Let it be done to me according to your word.” Jesus himself prayed: “Not my will, but yours be done.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Christian obedience is not blind submission. It is learning to trust God even when his way is different from our own. Every disciple faces this challenge. We must learn to surrender our pride and self-will and allow Jesus to guide our lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Growing in Love<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n When people hear the word chastity, they often think only of rules. Yet at its heart, chastity is about love. Every Christian is called to love in a pure and unselfish way. In marriage, chastity helps husband and wife love each other with respect and generosity. Outside marriage, chastity helps us use our gifts in a way that honours God and others. True love seeks the good of the other person. It is not selfish or possessive. A chaste heart is a heart that loves well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Living What We Believe<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Our faith must become visible in the way we live. There should be a connection between what we believe and how we act. Our prayer, our family life, our work, our friendships, and our service of others should all reflect our relationship with Christ.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The danger is that we can become Christians in name only. We can attend Mass, say prayers, and perform religious duties while our hearts remain unchanged. The Lord calls us to something deeper. He calls us to a life in which our actions grow naturally from our friendship with him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We Need One Another<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Christianity is not a solitary journey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We are joined together through our common life in Christ. The Eucharist reminds us that we belong not only to God but also to one another. Faith grows best when it is shared. We need the encouragement, support, and witness of other believers. We need families, parishes, prayer groups, and Christian friendships. A healthy Christian life includes both a personal relationship with Jesus and a commitment to his people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Serving as Jesus Served<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Jesus came not to be served but to serve. The more we grow close to him, the more we will want to serve others. Some Christians serve through family life. Others serve through parish ministries, works of charity, teaching, healthcare, pastoral care, or countless hidden acts of kindness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What matters is not simply what we do, but where it comes from. Christian service is different from mere good works. It flows from a heart touched by Christ. When we serve others out of love for Jesus, we become instruments through which he continues his work in the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Heart of the Matter<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n In the end, the Christian life is very simple. God calls each of us into a relationship with his Son. That call may be lived as a lay person, a priest, a deacon, or a religious. The external form differs, but the foundation remains the same.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The real question is not what role we have in the Church.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The real question is: How deeply are we allowing Jesus to live within us?<\/strong> Everything begins there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When our hearts belong to Christ, our lives become a witness to him. Our families, our work, our service, and our communities become places where others can encounter the love of God. The mission of every disciple is to share with others what God has done for us in Jesus Christ.<\/p>\n\n\n\n by David Walker<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" We live in a time of great change. The Church has changed in many ways over the past century, and the world around us has changed even more. Sometimes these changes can leave us uncertain. Yet beneath all the changes there is something that never changes: our call to follow Jesus Christ. Whether we are […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":28960,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6,17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-28959","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bishop-david-walker","category-newsletter"],"aioseo_notices":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/lectiodivina.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/The-face-of-Christ.jpg",500,333,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/lectiodivina.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/The-face-of-Christ-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/lectiodivina.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/The-face-of-Christ-300x200.jpg",300,200,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/lectiodivina.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/The-face-of-Christ.jpg",500,333,false],"large":["https:\/\/lectiodivina.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/The-face-of-Christ.jpg",500,333,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/lectiodivina.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/The-face-of-Christ.jpg",500,333,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/lectiodivina.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/The-face-of-Christ.jpg",500,333,false],"menu-24x24":["https:\/\/lectiodivina.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/The-face-of-Christ-24x16.jpg",24,16,true],"menu-36x36":["https:\/\/lectiodivina.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/The-face-of-Christ-36x24.jpg",36,24,true],"menu-48x48":["https:\/\/lectiodivina.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/The-face-of-Christ-48x32.jpg",48,32,true]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"David Walker","author_link":"https:\/\/lectiodivina.com.au\/?author=4"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"We live in a time of great change. The Church has changed in many ways over the past century, and the world around us has changed even more. Sometimes these changes can leave us uncertain. Yet beneath all the changes there is something that never changes: our call to follow Jesus Christ. Whether we are…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lectiodivina.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28959","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lectiodivina.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lectiodivina.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lectiodivina.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lectiodivina.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=28959"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/lectiodivina.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28959\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28961,"href":"https:\/\/lectiodivina.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28959\/revisions\/28961"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lectiodivina.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/28960"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lectiodivina.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=28959"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lectiodivina.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=28959"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lectiodivina.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=28959"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}