Reflecting on 2012

As 2012 comes to a close, what will we remember about this year? Before we move onto 2013, let’s take some time reflecting on 2012.

Remembering 2012

The HHS Mandate took center stage early in the year, the USCCB held a Fortnight for Freedom, we are finally settling into the new Mass changes, President Obama was re-elected to a second term, we began the Year of Faith, and the Pope tweeted for the first time. Quite a list.

Looking back, we can see both the need for and call to evangelize at an even greater level. The world needs to see the love of Christ, and the Church is calling us to share it.

What did your 2012 look like? Did you share your faith more or less in 2012? More importantly, did you live your faith more or less in 2012?

Personally, 2012 took my faith to new levels, both in the way I lived it and shared it, just as 2011 was greater than 2010. That’s an upward trend that I hope will continue.

New Chapters

Each Year, we celebrate New Year’s Eve as the close to one chapter in our personal stories and the beginning of another. We are given the opportunity to build on our successes and a new start at our failures.

Reflecting on 2012, if your year was less than stellar, you have a new opportunity in 2013 to grow in your Catholic faith.

If 2012 seemed like the pinnacle of your faith life, make 2013 the year that you see how high you can really climb.

That is the beauty of life. We may have ups and downs throughout our lives, good years and bad years, but when the next year comes, we have the ability to write the next chapter of our own stories.

New Year’s Resolutions

What was your New Year’s Resolution one year ago? Did you complete what you set out to do? Did you lose that 20 pounds? Did you move up in your career? Did you repair those broken relationships?

Chances are, if you’re like me, you did not complete everything that you set out to do, but that’s okay. In many ways, God opened up opportunities far greater than my own ideas, and my year turned out even better than I had imagined.

Now, as I ponder what resolutions to set for 2013, I only have one true goal in mind: live out my faith by following Christ the best way that I can.

Whatever your resolutions may be, I hope that 2013 will be the year that you build upon the successes of 2012 and learn from its failures. May God continue to bless you in this coming year and for many years to come.

Chad R. Torgerson

Chad R. Torgerson works as an IT Analyst for a Catholic publishing group. In his spare time, he enjoys writing and sharing his faith on his website, Waking Up Catholic, a guide to the Catholic RCIA process. and is also the Co-Founder of Assisi Media, a new Catholic publishing company focused on using new media to reach everyday Catholics. His new book, Waking Up Catholic, is available in eBook and paperback formats.

Reflecting on 2012 - New Evangelizers