Fr. Mike Schmitz

For you know how, like a father with his children, we exhorted each one of you and encouraged you and charged you to walk in a manner worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory.

Because part of it is, like you said, it can be so daunting for us as anyone, as Christians, specifically as Catholics, because I don't want to get it wrong.

And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it, not as the word of men, but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers.

I think one of the things that as Catholics we have is going for us and kind of going against us is we don't want to get it wrong.

We don't want to read it and misinterpret it.

We don't want to read it and misunderstand it.

And so it's kind of like there's hesitation.

For you, brethren, became imitators of the churches of God in Christ Jesus, which are in Judea.

And so what I've always wanted to do with my nieces and nephews is get them started by having something that's accessible.

For you suffered the same things from your own countrymen as they did from the Jews, who killed both the Lord Jesus and the prophets, and drove us out, and displeased God and oppose all men by hindering us from speaking to the Gentiles that they may be saved, so as always to fill up the measure of their sins.

And then the really cool thing is my oldest nephew

I think he was the first one that I ever gave the action Bible to.

He went to one of our camps and that one for engineer high, so sixth grade.

And at camp, we said, you know, all campers, what we want you to do is we want you to get your Bible, your actual Bible and read 10, 15 minutes a day.

But God's wrath has come upon them at last.

Paul's desire to visit the Thessalonians again.

But since we were deprived of you, brethren, for a short time, in person, not in heart, we endeavored the more eagerly and with great desire to see you face to face, because we wanted to come to you, I, Paul, again and again, but Satan hindered us.

And Max is his name.

Max just he started doing it.

I mean, he would have it in the car when his parents were driving him to this and that.