Why do we keep critics in our lives? You probably have someone in your life that seems to be on the hunt for anything they can criticize. It might not be a friend, a coworker, or a family member. It might just be yourself. Today, Fr. Mike explains how to turn your inner critic into your inner coach.Support The Fr. Mike Schmitz Catholic Podcast

What is truth? On this channel, we speak a lot about the teachings of the Church and how our society longs for these truths. But have you ever stopped and asked yourself what truth really is? There can be a lot of long, philosophical, complicated answers to this question, but today we have a simple one: truth can simply be defined as “what is.” In other words, a statement is either true or false depending on how closely it describes reality, or what is. But if truth is centered around reality, are there different truths for different people? Today, Fr. Mike explains what real truth is.Support The Fr. Mike Schmitz Catholic Podcast

What does it mean to say that Jesus is the Lord of your life? We hear this phrase a lot in the Church, that Jesus is the Lord of our lives, that he has dominion over them. But what does this look like practically? If we just look at the definition, it means surrendering everything we have to God, and giving it to him without hesitation. But how can we truly surrender everything to him without fearing we won’t get it back? Today, Fr. Mike talks about how we can surrender to God daily.Support The Fr. Mike Schmitz Catholic Podcast

Should we really talk to God about everything? There are a lot of different kinds of prayers (liturgical, litanies, the rosary, the chaplet of divine mercy, etc.), but today Father hones in on mental prayer. Mental prayer—including lectio divina and Ignatius prayer—is about having a conversation with God and inviting him into your mind and your heart. But our minds are messy places, and our hearts are wounded. Should we really be talking to God about all of our thoughts, longings, and desires?Support The Fr. Mike Schmitz Catholic Podcast

The Ten Commandments tell us to “honor thy mother and father”, but what does that really look like? Especially for adult children? Parents are not perfect, and sometimes they make mistakes that leave us and others wounded. So when God tells us to honor them, what does he mean by that? There’s a certain respect that all are owed simply by their personhood, and then there’s a respect that someone deserves because of their role or position. But what if our parents are dishonorable people? Does this commandment change once we’re adults out of their direct care? Today, Father Mike explains how we can love difficult parents.Support The Fr. Mike Schmitz Catholic Podcast

“You are not an extra in someone else’s vocation story.” We all know breakups are tough, and most of the time they are occasions of intense sadness and hurt, but what happens when your significant other breaks up with you for the religious life? Do you feel angry that they didn’t realize their vocation sooner, guilty for wanting to be with them, or just sad that you’re not who they’re meant to be with? Reactions to this kind of heartbreak are unpredictable, but the important thing to remember is that you have a vocation of your own, and it’s not any less important than the person entering religious life. Today, Father Mike shares his story of leaving a relationship to enter the seminary.Support The Fr. Mike Schmitz Catholic Podcast

The Catholic Church loves questions, but are we asking them for the right reasons? One of our Doctors of the Church, St. Thomas Aquinas, is known for asking the hardest questions we have for our faith. His summa is a book full of them, and some of the greatest saints are the ones that asked the hardest questions. Having questions is not an obstacle, but your intentions can make or break your faith. Today, Father Mike explains how we can question our faith well.Support The Fr. Mike Schmitz Catholic Podcast

The key to a happy death is not a long and fulfilled life—it’s a life of gratitude for the time given. Here’s why: We often forget that this life isn’t owed to us. Every breath we take is a gift from God, who is holding us in existence at this very moment. Once we start to think that this life is owed to us, that in some way we deserve it, we will become ungrateful for the time that is given, even if we’ve lived a long and happy life. Today, Father Mike explains how to fill your life with gratitude, and how that will prepare you for a happy death.Support The Fr. Mike Schmitz Catholic Podcast

The Wednesday of Holy Week is known to many as “Spy Wednesday”, but it’s also known as the “Day of Aloneness.” The backstory behind this moniker can have a profound impact on the way we live our lives. There are two people in the Holy Week narrative that experience profound loneliness: Jesus and Judas. There’s an honorable form of aloneness that we feel when we’re doing something we ought to be doing (walking a road that no one else can), but there’s also a sadder form of loneliness that exists when we are doing something we shouldn’t be doing. Today, Father Mike explains the difference between the aloneness Jesus felt during Holy Week, and what Judas felt. Ascension is proud to partner with authentically Catholic institutions and organizations committed to spreading the Gospel. Learn more about the sponsor of this video, Ave Maria University: https://tinyurl.com/yhbzmjsySupport The Fr. Mike Schmitz Catholic Podcast

During Holy Week, as we contemplate the last hours of Jesus’ life, we get an intimate look at how Jesus prays to his Father. Starting with our Lord’s prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane, we hear Jesus talking to God the Father about the upcoming moments of his life. He continues to pray through his Passion all the way until his last breath—a model that we as sons and daughters of God can follow as well. But what does Jesus show us about what it means to truly pray “Abba, Father”? Ascension is proud to partner with authentically Catholic institutions and organizations committed to spreading the Gospel. Learn more about the sponsor of this episode, Ave Maria University. Support The Fr. Mike Schmitz Catholic Podcast