Reaching for Heaven: 14 Spiritual Goals as You Grow Older

By Michael Amodei

As you grow older, you’ll find that life takes on a new rhythm, one where you can shed the responsibilities that once consumed your days. The hours at work and the bustling activities of parenthood or other vocations have now transformed into something different—a fresh chapter of life, filled with new opportunities for reflection and growth. It’s your time to pivot and focus on how God will judge your life and how to make a final push for getting to heaven.

Through personal stories, humor, and practical advice, Michael Amodei—a lifelong Catholic with a deep devotion to the Virgin Mary and the University of Notre Dame’s Fighting Irish—shares fourteen practices to help enrich your spirituality as you strive for heaven.

In Reaching for Heaven, seasoned book editor Michael Amodei shares what older Catholics need to hear to make the most of their time. “This book is a kind of wake-up call,” he writes, “a chance to become a better Catholic so that when we face that one-on-one with Jesus, we don’t have to fear what is coming.”

He contends that even a small investment in time and energy thinking about your golden years can have a rich payoff as you remember the past, act in the present, and plan for the future. He builds on his own spiritually rich memories—including his view from the fifty-yard line at Notre Dame Stadium—to show how you can invent your own life plan by selecting from spiritual habits and practices that have formed and strengthened Catholics for centuries. By creating both short- and long-term goals, you can

• cultivate a deeper prayer life by praying the Liturgy of the Hours;
• get more out of scripture by taking a class or participating in a group Bible study;
• make a pilgrimage to a holy site or shrine (Amodei recommends the Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto either in France or at the University of Notre Dame);
• correct past wrongs and heal past injuries not only by apologizing to someone you’ve hurt but also by making amends;
• strengthen family bonds by writing notes to tell family members what you appreciate about them; and
• draw closer to Mary by consecrating yourself to her.

 

He guides you to use the power of memory to shape your understanding of who God is and who you truly are by putting what you learn into practice incrementally over time to achieve the optimal plan for meeting Jesus face to face. This plan can lead you towards Judgment Day with confidence, knowing that you’ve lived a life dedicated to love, service, and spiritual growth.

The book includes questions for reflection. It is an excellent resource for personal or small-group study. Additional resources are also available online.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Ave Maria Press
• Release date: Feb 2, 2024
• ISBN: 9781646802753

Michael Amodei

Michael Amodei is executive editor and curriculum development manager at Ave Maria Press, where he writes and edits Catholic high school religion textbooks. He is the author of Reaching for Heaven: 14 Spiritual Goals as You Grow Older, and several books, including Send Out Your Spirit, Catholic Essentials, The Ave Guide to the Scriptural Rosary, and The Ave Guide to Eucharistic Adoration. Amodei also has acquired a number of spiritual books for Ave Maria Press, including A Teen’s Game Plan for Life by Lou Holtz, Holy Goals for Body and Soul by Bishop Thomas Paprocki, and Expect More! by Muffet McGraw. Amodei earned his bachelor’s degree in English from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, California, where he also earned a master’s degree in religious education. Amodei previously served as director of religious education and as a youth minister at St. Monica Catholic Church in Santa Monica, California. He also served as a math, religion, and gym teacher, as well as a Catholic Youth Organization sports coach at St. Monica Elementary School. He is leader of the Ave Maria Press Chapter of Catholic Relief Services, a member of the Association of Catholic Publishers, and a third degree in the Knights of Columbus. Amodei has been a youth sports coach for more than forty years and is the field supervisor for home football games at the University of Notre Dame. Amodei lives with his family in South Bend, Indiana.

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