Divine mercy is.

Life-changing.

Profound.

Dynamic.

Beautiful.

Powerful.

I am a pilgrim of mercy.

When we were starting our family, Meghan and I talked a lot about how we wanted to raise our children and some of the outcomes that were important to us. One of our goals has always been to raise children who love learning. We decided that fostering a love of learning was more important than grades because we believe if they love learning, they will look for new ways to learn every day for the rest of their lives. More important than a love of learning, we decided we wanted to help our children develop a strong sense of self while they were still very young. We knew the world would try to rob them of their very selves because that is what our culture is doing to people. And we wanted to try to help them build a cultural defense system. And at the core of this, we believed was a strong sense of self. In his poem, Second Coming, William Butler Yeats wrote, "The falcon cannot hear the falconer. Things fall apart. Center cannot hold." The message is clear. Things fall apart when we can't hear the voice of God in our lives. Separated from God, the center of our lives cannot hold, and chaos and confusion take over. One of the most toxic and tragic developments in our culture since the turn of the new millennium has been to focus on identity politics. Identity politics refers to a political approach where individuals or groups advocate for policies, rights, and representation based on shared aspects of their identity, such as race, gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, religion, or other social characteristics. This approach is bound to create division, undermine merit, promote victimhood, and denies individuality by reducing people to their group identities. The great confusion of our age surrounds identity. This has led to identity wars that fail to recognise the most important aspect of our identity. The primary aspect of a person's identity isn't their age, race, body size, immigration status, disability, religion, gender, sexual orientation, or socioeconomic class. And the primary aspect of a person's identity isn't different from one person to the next person. It is the same for us all. We are children of God. When we try to place something else at the core of our identity, the result will always be pain and confusion. I identify as a child of God. I'm an Australian by birth. I'm an American citizen. I am 51 years old. I am a husband and a father. I'm a white male. I'm an author. I'm a Christian. I'm a Catholic. And there are many more aspects to my identity, but they are all secondary to my identity as a child of God. This is what binds us all together. This is what makes us one. This will be the source of our unity when we acknowledge, respect, and celebrate it. And it will be the source of our division when we deny it or deprioritize it. Our culture is full of identity confusion. As parents, we are constantly vigilant regarding the identity our children are taking on as a result of their daily interaction with other people and the culture. I want my children to know that they are children of a great king. I made a poster to hang in my daughter's room that reads, "I am the daughter of a great king. He is my Father and my God. The world may praise me or criticize me. It matters not. He is with me, always at my side, guiding and protecting me. I do not fear because I am his." In the boys' room, there's the same poster and just a couple of word changes, "I am the son of a great king." You see, our identity comes from God. When we turn our backs on God, cast him aside, our lives become adrift. Our center cannot hold. And we become lost and confused. Today, we have people saying, "Well, I identify as this," or, "I identify as that." But this is an aberration. Our primary identity is as children of God. We are children of God. I identify as a child of God. I want my children to draw their sense of self from this great truth. One of the plagues of our age is unworthiness. So many people think that they're not enough. Societal expectations and endless comparisons driven by social media, an explosion of envy, excessive criticism, and neglect in childhood, perfectionism, and unrealistic standards all leave people feeling unloved, unworthy, inherently flawed, inadequate, and unlovable. The more we understand and believe we are sons and daughters of a great king, the less likely we are to experience these feelings of inadequacy. If we believed with our whole hearts that we are children of God and therefore of infinite value, we wouldn't believe these things about ourselves. Too many of us have a very poor sense of self. God wants to repair and restore our sense of self. A clear sense of self empowers you to live authentically. You embrace your strength and acknowledge your limitations without being defined by them. This self-awareness fosters confidence and resilience, enabling you to endure challenges and uncertainties. It also allows you to develop fulfilling relationships by setting and maintaining healthy boundaries. A strong sense of self guides you to make decisions that align with your values and beliefs, which ensure you invest your energy in what truly matters. The wisdom of divine mercy helps us to develop an authentic sense of self by giving us the courage to face all that is true about ourselves and liberating us from all that is false. St. Teresa of Ávila wrote, "Humility is truth." This simple statement reflects a profound understanding. Humility isn't about thinking less of ourselves or putting ourselves down or denying our inherent worth. It's about acknowledging reality. We are children of God. We're capable of amazing things. We are finite, fallible, and sinful, and we are completely and utterly dependent on God, who is the source of life and everything good. For in Him we live and move and have our being we read in Acts. This is reality. And the more our sense of self is grounded in these truths, the more authentic our sense of self will be, but let there be no confusion about who you are. You are a child of God. If we could truly comprehend this concept that God is our Father, if we could internalize this truth, we would never get past our Father in the prayer. Just whispering the words, "Our Father" would leave us stupefied. You are the son or daughter of a great king. Trust, surrender, believe, receive.

There is a multi-generational problem in the church that deserves our urgent attention. It seems the growing consensus among Catholics is that mass is boring and that it isn't relevant to modern life. Nothing could be further from the truth. And this year, we want to change that mistaken perception forever. Dynamic Catholic is developing a world-class program that will teach Catholics, young and old, about the genius of the mass and show them exactly how it applies to their daily lives. I hope this stirs your soul. I hope you want to be a part of it. So click the button below. Choose your welcome gift. Become a Dynamic Catholic Ambassador today. We had so much fun creating these new welcome gifts for you. I hope you enjoy them. Have a great day, and remember, Be Bold, Be Catholic.

Eternal God.

In whom mercy is endless.

And the treasury of compassion inexhaustible.

Look kindly upon us.

And increase your mercy in us.

That in difficult moments–

–we might not despair.

Nor become despondent.

But with great confidence–

–submit ourselves to your holy will.

Which is love and mercy itself.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

See you tomorrow.

Thank you, Ambassadors.

You are changing the world.

Have a great day.

Have a great day.

Have a great day.

Hey, Isabel. One of the best ways to be a pilgrim of mercy is to collaborate with God to create holy moments. So I figured, while we have a couple of minutes, you could inspire the audience to create some holy moments. So what is today's Holy Moment Challenge?

Let's see. Today's Holy Moment Challenge: say no to something that isn't good for you.