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| Speaker Dominick Albano from Dynamic Catholic gives a talk during the Find Your Greatness event at St Cecilia Parish in Wisconsin Dells. (Catholic Herald photos/Kevin Wondrash |
WISCONSIN DELLS — Speaker Dominick Albano asked his audience, “What does it mean to live a great life?”
As the crowd at St. Cecilia Parish in Wisconsin Dells pondered that question, Albano said that greatness, or living a great life, is becoming “the best version of ourselves.”
He added that we are always making choices in our life between being our best self, or a lesser version.
He used the example of choosing between a donut and a banana.
The banana is the healthier choice, but the donut can be more pleasurable.
Albano said we live great lives when we choose the bananas versus the donuts.
Find Your Greatness
Albano spoke at the Find Your Greatness event at the parish on October 20.
The event was presented by Dynamic Catholic, a community and movement whose mission is to “re-energize the Catholic Church in America by developing world-class resources that inspire people to rediscover the genius of Catholicism.”
Dynamic Catholic attempts to accomplish this through events, books and CDs, and daily reflections.
Accompanied with songs by musician Paul Vogrinc, Albano presented four goals or steps to achieve living a “great life”:
• Prayer
• Study
• Generosity
• Evangelization
Greatness with prayer
Albano broke down the thoughts and concepts behind each of the steps.
The first step he explained was prayer.
Albano called prayer a “gift from God to us”.
He said most people, even with a desire to pray more, only do so sporadically and usually when one is scared or thankful.
Albano added that when we are not praying “greatly,” it feels like more of an “obligation” than a conversation between us and God, or even just us listening to God.
He said that prayer is something that can’t be left up to chance. One can’t just pray when one happens to find time; it needs to become a habit.
A key to aiding us in our prayer lives, Albano said, is silence.
“Silence is when God speaks to us,” he explained.
He added that, “clarity emerges from silence.”
Albano broke down study, knowing God versus knowing about God; generosity, giving of ourselves and expecting nothing in return versus giving something and expecting something in return; and evangelization, sharing the “best news” and helping others become the best versions of themselves, in a similar manner.
A personal plan for greatness
Toward the end of the talk, Albano encouraged everyone to make a personal plan for each of the steps, in order to come closer to living a great life.
For prayer, Albano encouraged everyone to start with a small goal, such as determining a time and place to pray and commit to it, daily.
He then asked everyone to set a longer-term goal for prayer, such as praying for 10 minutes a day.
He then asked everyone to rate where they are now, in regards to their prayer life, on a scale from one to 10.
He then had options for a “next step” in everyone’s prayer journey, such as pausing at 12 noon each day to pray the “Our Father” as a way to “re-focus yourself and weave prayer throughout the day.”
Goals for the other steps included: reading five pages of the Bible or a spiritual book, every day; coming up with three ministries and/or charities to increase generosity toward; and praying for a friend or family member who has fallen away from the Catholic faith.
Albano said improvement in all of these areas could increase the chances for someone to be the best version of themselves, and therefore, live a great life.
For more information on Dynamic Catholic, go to https://dynamiccatholic.com