LISA: Hi, I’m Lisa Martinez the founder of Little With Great Love, a nonprofit ministry of storytellers using media to journey with others to restoration in Christ.
KELLY: And I’m Kelly Breaux, the founder of Red Bird Ministries, the sister nonprofit, that provides Catholic grief support ministry.
LISA: And starting February 17, 2021, or Ash Wednesday, we are partnering for the next 40 days together this Lent on a very special journey.
KELLY: But before we share more about our Lenten journey, there’s something really important we need to say first. When people hear about our ministries or programs, watch our videos, or read our materials, they sometimes say, “Is this for me? I’m not Catholic.” Or, “I’m not ‘Catholic enough’ to participate.” And that is not at all what our ministries are about, because everyone is welcome at the Lord’s table.
LISA: Yes. And honestly, we often feel unworthy or ill-equipped to do healing ministry ourselves with people. And guess what, if you read the Scriptures or about the lives of the saints, you’ll see that they often felt the exact same way. Unworthy, ill-equipped, broken. Because we are. We all are. It’s so easy to label people “holy rollers” or “bible beaters” and so on and just think that they are so different from us. That holiness is for others and not for ourselves. And that saints are remarkable souls who did things years ago that we could never have done. But that’s a lie.
KELLY: Exactly, the saints were people, just like you and me. They were living ordinary lives during their own time and in their own way. God placed a heavenly calling over their lives and chose each one of them to pursue an extraordinary life. And only God can do that, make the ordinary extraordinary.
LISA: Yes. But let’s be real for a second, y’all. Didn’t 2020 feel a lot like Lent? A season of preparation where there was stripping, purifying, suffering, and dying? I mean, at this point I’m not alone in feeling weary and wounded. Sometimes I’m like, I love you Lord, but I just can’t take one more friggin’ thing. So now that we’re starting Lent after such a trying time, where do go from here?
KELLY: Lent is about journeying the road to Calvary towards the resurrected Christ on Easter. But there is no Easter Sunday without Good Friday. And 40 days isn’t a short journey, so we must support each other along the way to help fortify one another. And we have all that we need for this journey. It’s only Jesus that can provide that. And only Him that can truly heal people. From our own wounds and sufferings, we are just creating this opportunity to draw people back to the Healer, the resurrected Christ.
LISA: Amen. So how does this relate to this podcast? Well, Saints for Slackers was born out of conversation with our team’s spiritual mom, Tammi McCarthy. We’ve been friends since our slacker days back at Franciscan University, where God began equipping us more with what we needed to live out our callings. And here we are years later, all living out our various vocations and seeking sainthood and still a bunch of slackers, we’re just older and achier. HA! But seriously, as soon as I heard Tammi joke about “its kinda like Saints for Slackers,” I knew it was what God wanted us to do for Lent. And then Kelly said, yes, sign Red Bird up, too!
KELLY: So, we are doing Lent in a special way this year with “Saints for Slackers”. And if you’ve stumbled upon this late, or after Lent, then by all means you are most welcome to journey with us whenever and however you can. But between our two teams and some of our dear friends, which includes priests, we’ve put together a brief collection of stories based on our favorite quotes from our favorite saints.
LISA: Yes, we’ve got a great line up for you that runs each day of Lent (so no Sundays) until Holy Thursday, friends. There will be all kinds of saints, sinners, and storytellers across this journey. Some will be funny, some thought-provoking, some challenging, and you’ll hear from youth to elders of the Church and in between; but all will bring us back to our true journey – so not just the Lenten one – but the journey of our lives towards Heaven.
KELLY: I can relate to the saints in some ways, and I’ll be sharing a couple of my favorites, and my husband and team, too. But I can also relate to the slackers. Because I’m in the pursuit of holiness but I’m also aware of my humanness. The saints are really just our friends. When you want prayers, don’t you call or text a friend and ask them to pray for you? Don’t your friends inspire you (hopefully) to be a better person? So, this podcast is about making friends with our friends in Heaven.
LISA: Absolutely. Saint originates from the Greek word meaning “holy” or “set apart.” And we are all called to be holy and set apart for Christ. The New Testament alone uses the word saint 67 times. So, it’s obviously important for us to not just know, but live sainthood starting now. And to also remember that it isn’t about a superhero group of believers who served God in a grandiose way that you and I could never achieve. No, it was a group of fishermen, a barren woman, a leper, a criminal, a grieving widow or mother, and so many more that stand in the communion of saints that we have access to through our Faith.
KELLY: So, this is your invitation to join us. Our reflections on a quote from a saint each day are short, bite-sized audio clips to make it super simple for all of us slackers, and will be on Spotify. For those of you who love good visuals, the written quote and powerful visual imagery will be posted on the blog each day of Lent at littlewithgreatlove.com. There are links on the redbird.love website back to this the podcast and blogs, too. You can also follow both of our ministries on Facebook, where we’ll share each new podcast and blog. Little With Great Love will also post to Instagram and Pinterest. We’ll put links in the show notes to make following along daily very easy for you wherever you wish.
LISA: And let’s not forget that as a bonus, our teams have also come up with a hilarious list of 40+ Wannabe Patron Saints. Because God showed that the Christian life involves suffering but we are to count it all joy. And not in a slappy clappy kind of inauthentic way, but in a deep abiding joy found in the Lord. After all, didn’t Veronica wipe Christ’s Sacred Face along His way to Calvary?
KELLY: Yes, so these Wannabe Patron Saints will bring us a little light-hearted laugh to nurture the joy our hearts desperately need right now. And maybe even make us think of what we wannabe patron saints of too.
LISA. The cool thing is that we even have some Saints for Slackers & Wannabe Patron Saints swag in the Little With Great Love shop. So, if you were inspired or laughed out loud, you can spread that cheer with your gear. There are hoodies, cause every slacker needs a good one, stickers, and more! And all purchases through our websites, or donations provided, directly support the healing ministry we do. So, thanks in advance because we have a lot of work to do for the Lord.
KELLY: Yes, we do. But for now, this is our work. Walking with you and the saints through Lent. I can’t wait to start walking with some of Jesus’ best friends on the road to Calvary this Lent, together.
LISA: Me too. Let’s go! So, until tomorrow, may God bring peace, love, joy and hope and all your hearts need for this particular journey, right now, through the intercession of our friends, the saints in heaven.
KELLY: AMEN! See y’all tomorrow!
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