Being on mission is hard. It can be tiring and discouraging when you feel like your attempts aren’t working or you’re alone in the effort. 

You look around and not only is the world resistant to it, but often times, even our parishes seem so inward focused it feels impossible to change. 

So where can we go to get motivation when the resistance is too great? When the mission is starting to feel too heavy? When it feels less like a privilege and more like a burden? 

In addition to prayer and sacraments, here are some ways we’ve seen disciples revitalized in their mission.

Read the Acts of the Apostles

So much of what we experience in this life can be found in parallels in the scriptures. Every self-doubt, every feeling of unworthiness, every struggle with sin… it’s all in there. For us on mission, the Acts of the Apostles are specifically filled with the challenges and joys of evangelizing. 

In these books, we’re reminded that God desires a growing Church and we see how He chooses those we might not expect like Saul, who persecuted the emerging Christian community or Cornelius, whose family was not even Jewish, let alone Christian. 

Or we can think of others in the Bible who felt unsuited or ill-equipped for ministry—Moses was afraid of public speaking (Ex 4:10), Jeremiah thought that he was too young (Jer 1:60), Jonah literally fled from God (Jon 1:3), and Peter begged Jesus to leave because he was so aware of his sinfulness (Luke 5:8).

Even the heroes of the Bible were weary at times. In fact, the reminder of unworthiness in those moments reminds us that none of us are the heroes in the mission. God is.  

As we read these stories, finding solitude and assurance in their stories, we also encounter Jesus. He speaks to us through the word and the Catechism reminds us that strength is there to be drawn from:

In Sacred Scripture, the Church constantly finds her nourishment and her strength, for she welcomes it not as a human word, "but as what it really is, the word of God". "In the sacred books, the Father who is in heaven comes lovingly to meet his children, and talks with them." (104)

Sharpen your axe

Abraham Lincoln has a famous quote: “If you gave me 6 hours to cut down a tree, I’d spend the first 4 sharpening the axe.” 

What does it mean to “sharpen our axe” when it comes to missionary efforts? 

When the disciples were called by Jesus, they weren’t immediately sent off by themselves. They started by spending time learning from their teacher. 

We can start by looking at the state of our own heart. We can put time into receiving formation, training, mentorship, good reading, and learning about evangelization. It can involve listening, learning, and being inspired by conversion stories. 

No matter how much experience or head knowledge we have, refreshing our knowledge and being inspired by others does not dull our efforts. It revitalizes them. This a big reason we encourage disciples to take training and connect with others, so that each of us might flourish in our calling to be on mission.

Ask your community to pray with you, not just for you

Henri Nouwen said, “Christian community is the place where we keep the flame of hope alive among us and take it seriously so that it can grow and become stronger in us.”

A lot of us have seen hope grow in community. The shoulder to lean on when we are weary and the mouth to pray when we may not have the words. This life of prayer and life of community fit so beautifully together, and are intertwined into how we live out our life on mission (Matthew 9:38). 

But prayer ministry isn’t just intercession—it’s hearing God’s voice and letting that minister to our souls. When we pray together, God can encourage us through what those around us have to speak. 

Allow this time to be Spirit-led, welcoming Him to speak and restore. The more we lean on this, the more we learn not to lean on our own power but rely on cues from the Holy Spirit. 

If you need someone to pray with, the Proclaim Facebook group is the first place to go. Our community gathers there to encourage one another and we’re happy to connect you with someone. 

Eucharistic adoration

Lumen Gentium reminds us that the Eucharist is the “source and summit” of the Christian life. It is a wellspring we must return to again and again. 

As we gaze upon Him we realize how much Jesus desires to be near to us. And we are able to receive something from Him that makes us more like Him. 

St. Irenaus, quoted in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, says this: 

'Our way of thinking is attuned to the Eucharist, and the Eucharist in turn confirms our way of thinking.' (CCC 1327) 

St. Elizabeth Ann Seton found tremendous consolation from her sorrows before the Blessed Sacrament; "how sweet, the presence of Jesus to the longing and harassed soul! He is instant peace and balm to every wound."

St. Therese put it this way: "Do you realize that Jesus is there in the Blessed Sacrament expressly for you, for you alone? He burns with the desire to come into your heart. Frequently, only silence can express my prayer. However, this Divine Guest of the tabernacle understands all, even the silence of a child's soul filled with gratitude. When I am before the tabernacle, I can say only one thing to Our Lord: 'My God, you know that I love you' and I feel my prayer does not tire Jesus. To bear the exile of this valley of tears I need the glance of my Divine Savior. This glance full of love has revealed its charms to me. It has made me sense the happiness of Heaven. My Jesus smiles at me when I sigh to Him. Then I no longer feel my trial of faith. My God's Glance, His ravishing Smile, That is Heaven for me!”

If the mission is feeling heavy, we can take it to the Lord in Eucharistic adoration. He will lighten the load we are carrying. 

Confession

St. Faustina said that Jesus referred to the sacrament of confession as “the tribunal of my mercy,” where the greatest of miracles take place. 

He communicated to her in prayer: “Were souls like a decaying corpse so that from a human standpoint there would be no [hope of] restoration and everything would already be lost, it is not so with God. The miracle of Divine Mercy restores that soul in full.”

Confession is refreshment in the weary days. It’s where you experience the reality of grace. If you’re feeling a bit burdened, the sacrament of reconciliation is there for you. 

Give yourself permission to rest

Evangelization is meant to be taken seriously, but that doesn’t mean taking yourself too seriously. 

Take time to rest! Have fun, sleep in, find solitude. Rest is not giving up, it’s simply restoring your soul to have the joy, zeal, and energy to go back out and share from. 

This also means resting in God. Isaiah 40:28-31 reminds us that while we grow weary, God does not grow weary; “He gives strength to the weary, he strengthens the powerless. Young men may grow tired and weary, youths may stumble, but those who hope in the Lord renew their strength, they put out wings like eagles. They run and do not grow weary, walk and never tire.”

And Matt 11:28–30 says, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

When we are yoked to Jesus, He takes the heaviness. It requires being quiet in His presence, meditating on His word, and learning from other disciples. This is where we are restored.

Where do you find strength, relief, and hope when you need it? We hope you’ll share with the rest of the community. 

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