St. Joseph's Catholic Community of Grand Rapids and St. Augustine's Catholic Church of Cohasset recently shared a message from their pastor on the topic of personal growth.

Father Blake Rozier noted the acronym PISH and what it stands for: Pastoral, Intellectual, Spiritual and Human.

"It is an acronym that helps seminarians keep in mind the different areas of formation as they prepare for priesthood," Rozier said in the churches' Oct. 18/25 bulletin. "It may be a good thing to cut out this article and look at it from time to time to evaluate formation in your life. As I mentioned in my homily, formation should continue for life for all of us. As a priest, it is good for me to continue to look at these areas as well." 

Rozier encouraged everyone to evaluate themselves and ask important questions about the different relationships in their lives. How are you listening to others? Are you acknowledging that others are made in God's image? Are there neglected relationships in your life and can those relationships be fixed?

"Intellectual" refers to continuing to learn and grow in your faith during your lifetime.

"Do we take some time to study the Scriptures?" Rozier asked in the bulletin. "If we have questions about what we believe as Catholics, do we research the answer by looking in the Catechism or in another reputable Catholic source? A great resource is Formed.org. Parishioners of our parish cluster can sign up for a free account. You can look up St. Joseph’s, register, and have access to hundreds of great resources on a variety of Catholic topics from excellent Catholic teachers. I have appreciated listening to different talks during my road trips."

"Spiritual formation" means praying and attending Mass regularly, seeking to spend time with God through meditation, and leveraging the Catholic tradition to improve your relationship with Christ.

"Human formation" refers to how you are taking care of yourself. Do you get enough hours of sleep each night? Do you exercise and have a healthy diet?

"All of us have areas in which to grow," Fr. Rozier said. "The more we grow, the more we will bear fruit for the glory of God."