Join renowned Catholic global speaker Jonathan Doyle in this profound episode, as he explores a timeless quote from Saint Francis de Sales that unveils the transformative power of patience with our faults and failures. Delve into the depths of this wisdom, discovering how it can empower both Catholic teachers and their students to embrace growth, find solace in God's grace, and overcome their shortcomings through the sacraments.

In this enlightening discussion, we unpack the significance of Saint Francis de Sales' words, highlighting the importance of patience and self-compassion on our spiritual journey. Explore how learning from our mistakes, rather than being discouraged by them, can lead to profound spiritual growth and renewal.

Jonathan Doyle, a trusted voice in Catholic education, shares practical strategies and inspiring anecdotes to guide Catholic teachers in nurturing their students' spiritual development. Discover how you can create a supportive and compassionate environment that encourages students to identify their own faults and embrace the process of growth and transformation through the grace of God and the sacraments.

This episode serves as a call to both teachers and students alike, reminding us all of the power of God's love and forgiveness. Jonathan Doyle provides insightful guidance on how to encourage students to approach the sacraments as sources of healing and strength, enabling them to embrace their own shortcomings and grow in their relationship with God.

Through engaging storytelling and relatable examples, this episode inspires Catholic teachers to walk alongside their students, offering guidance, support, and the reassurance of God's unconditional love. Together, let's create an environment where failures are seen as opportunities for growth, and where the grace of the sacraments becomes a transformative force in the lives of our students.

Don't miss this enriching episode! Share it with your fellow Catholic teachers, educators, and anyone seeking inspiration in their own spiritual journey. Let's foster an atmosphere of patience, self-compassion, and growth, empowering ourselves and our students to rise above our shortcomings and walk confidently in God's loving grace.

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https://www.instagram.com/jdoylespeaks/

Well, hello there.

My friend, Jonathan Doyle, welcome a board to the Catholic teacher daily podcast.

I'm glad you are here.

God bless you wherever you are, wherever you're listening, you

might be in your car in the gym.

You might have your gym in the car who knows, or car in the gym.

You are welcome here.

I'm glad you made the time to listen in.

Please make sure you've subscribed.

If you know, if you haven't hit that subscribe button, do that for me,

hit the subscribe button and, um, go and check out the other links.

There's the links across to the YouTube channel.

There is links across to how to book me to speak.

It is all there.

Friends today, we're going to one of the masters.

Wow.

Gosh, why wouldn't you be Catholic?

Right.

We just have so many incredible men and women, so many great saints.

So many great saints.

Who just walked the path ahead of us.

They're pointing us to the father's house and they got so much wisdom to burn.

So let us.

Let's catch fire.

As Catherine of Sienna used to save you are who you are meant to be.

Then you will set the world on fire.

So let's get some fire into us today from San Francis to sales.

One of the great spiritual masters, who of course wrote introduction to the

devout life and other spiritual goodies.

It is a very veritable cookie collection.

Of spiritual gyms.

That is a total mixing of metaphors.

Listen to what's and Francis de sales has to say to you today, my Catholic teacher

friend, he says this have patients.

With all things.

But chiefly have patience with yourself.

Do not lose courage.

In considering your own imperfections.

But instantly set about remedying them.

Every day, begin the task and you have patients with all things, but

chiefly have patience with yourself.

Do not lose courage in considering your own imperfections, but instantly

set about remedying them every day.

Begin the task, a new.

All right.

There's two levels about this.

I want to talk to you about, firstly, let's talk about you and me.

Friends.

I turned 50 this year.

Can you believe it?

I can't even turn 50 this year.

I feel 25.

I still feel 25.

I did tons of exercise.

I'm super fit, feeling good.

But I'm turning 50.

Here's what I've learned.

All of us carry sins and spiritual struggles.

The can take.

Five minutes to overcome or five decades to overcome.

And it's mystery.

I don't know why, you know, some Paul himself said it, you know, that

Christ gave him a thorn in his flesh.

And many times he asked the Lord to remove it.

But what was the Lord's answer was?

Well, my grace is sufficient for you.

My strength is made perfect in weakness.

So friends, there is great spiritual mysteries going on here that

somehow it is in our weakness.

It is in our imperfections that Christ power and Gloria made manifest go figure.

Right.

Because we are a.

A functionalist culture.

We like, you know, In, you know, inputs in outcomes out, right.

We kind of want to know, well, if I do this, this will be the result.

So it's hard for us when we sometimes wonder why we don't overcome

our own weaknesses and sins.

You look at Romans chapter eight, right.

Where Paul says, I see the good thing that I want to do.

But I don't do it.

The, I do the exact opposite.

I mean, does that, does that resonate with you?

Do you have something in your life behavior?

Uh, an attitude, a way of speaking.

A scene of some form that you use.

It's like your brain says, okay, here's that situation again?

Now, remember?

When you go up to that person.

Don't say that thing.

Okay.

And your brain's like, okay, we agree.

And you're like, yeah, we agree.

You walk up there and you just like black, you just say it and your

brain is like, oh, that was great.

That was fantastic.

Well done.

We do it right.

But I love these beautiful words that I have for you.

And for me, from St.

Francis to sales, telling us that, you know, what have patients

have patients have patients.

Have patients with yourself.

And don't lose your courage because I think it's possible to look

at our own weaknesses and sins and go, wow, I've tried so hard.

I've tried.

And we just give up.

So we need to keep our courage and that's a grace to.

But then we instantly set about remedying them.

Right?

So, so here's the tension that we recognize them.

We feel the exhaustion and futility of our own limitation and weakness.

But then we still set about trying to remedy them.

And this is one of the beauties of the Christian life.

One of the great mysterious paradoxes.

That.

Grace does everything, but we have to cooperate with grace.

So it's both and.

Right again, remember St.

Augustine's great quote.

He who created you without your cooperation will not save

you without your cooperation.

So there's this calm penetration between what God does and what we do.

So yes, we do have to keep trying.

We do have to deploy our will.

Our free will as best we can.

We need to avoid the occasion of sin.

We need to avoid the situations and people and circumstances that can.

Draw us easily into sin.

And then St.

Francis de sales has everyday to begin the task in you everyday to begin the task.

And you so.

We have patients, we make efforts.

And then we try again and again and again, and whatever it takes 50

years, 60 years, 70 years, 80 years.

But what have we eventually get there?

You know, if you're a parent, don't you love it when your kid

tries don't you just love it.

When your kid tries right there, they try.

That's something really powerful and just seeing them try, even

if they didn't get it right.

And look the other level of this, right?

So this isn't just like me preaching a pastoral message to you.

What does it mean for Catholic education?

Well, it means that your classrooms will be full of imperfect students.

Have you noticed.

Have you noticed, have you walked in there and gone something's

wrong with my classroom?

They're not perfect.

Correct.

They're not, they are imperfect.

Post-lab Syrian fallen, sinners.

But that's not all they are.

They made an image of God.

He wants them home.

The father wants his kids back.

And he's asking you to help.

And so what this means is I want you to consider the imperfections of the

students in your classrooms, the ones that call out the ones that do nothing

and don't call out and fall asleep.

The ones who are rude and ungrateful and disrespectful, the ones

that wreck your perfect lessons.

Have patients with them.

Don't lose courage.

But help them to remedy their sins, help them to remedy their imperfections.

Gently point them out.

Help them to, to grow.

Uh, I've been doing this recently with one of my kids.

Uh,

Who's just hit an age early teens where they're kind of a

bit blahzay a bit like, man.

And it's not, it's not malicious.

It's just that they don't think through as teenagers, obviously.

Don't.

You know, just a little things.

Like last night I did dinner for everybody and then one of my kids

are going to remain nameless.

They just like, kind of put that flights up and sort of walked

off to go do something else.

And I'm like, ah, hello.

Hello.

What are we going to do here and there?

I don't know what, what do we do?

Yeah, and I'm going, you know, that the kitchen.

Doesn't actually magically clean itself, right.

That the.

The kitchen fairies, don't just pop out of the cupboard and kind of

just magically do that every night.

And they're like what?

They don't really.

Like, well, how does, how does it get cleaned out?

I have no idea.

I said, well, it's interesting actually.

Most of the time dad does it.

So I helped them to see the importance of.

Contributing and remedying their imperfections.

And then I'm probably going to have to help him again tomorrow.

And then the day after that, and then eventually.

With their own will.

They're going to realize and get better at it.

And that's what it's like in the classroom.

Right.

Gently helped them see the imperfections.

Help them see the potential they have for more.

And then do it again the next day and the next day.

Do you not understand?

The power of your vocation.

What incredible thing that is.

See, you're trapped in a culture that kind of goes, yeah.

You know, what's important.

Private jet that's important.

You know, 10 million Instagram followers, that's important,

you know, what's important.

Pointing out, the helping a young person encounter their imperfections.

In a gentle way and helping them to remedy them.

When you get to heaven, God is going to show that to you.

He is going to say, Hey, do you remember that?

And you look on, I know I didn't remember that.

It's going to show it to you.

It's gonna be incredible.

All right.

God bless you.

Help them.

Lord, I'm praying for myself.

I'm praying for every teacher listening right now, help us with

our imperfections Lord, give us the courage to not beat ourselves up.

Give us the courage not to quit on ourselves.

Give us the courage to know that you never give up on us.

Give us the courage to help every young person gently encountered

their imperfections and help us to give them a beautiful, expansive,

rich vision for their lives of virtue and goodness, and potential.

I pray this in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Can I pray for you to subscribe?

Would that be, would that be manipulative?

Please subscribe to the podcast.

Go and check it.

that links the links you can book me to speak live go check out the youtube

channel my name is jonathan doyle this has been the catholic teacher daily podcast