REBOOT! with Chris Stefanick

By Kanobia Russell-Blackmon | The Catholic Compass | July/August 2024

“God created us for joy,” is the powerful message to hundreds during a two-hour captivating and inspiring talk by acclaimed author, speaker and founder of Real Life Catholic, Chris Stefanick. Reboot, “a fun, inspiring, and practical experience for all ages of applying the beauty and genius of the Gospel to every aspect of your life,” was hosted by St. Paul Parish where it was held on April 24.

St. Paul parishioner Nanci Pruter, one of the organizers of the event, explained that because “Chris is a family man and father of six, [we] knew he would speak to the families” since “family” has been the theme of the parish’s Lenten/Spring missions the last three years.

When Stefanick kicked off the gathering by asking, “Who wants more joy in their life?” an affirmative response echoed across the assembly. He reiterated many times that God created us for joy. Nancy Weisgaber affirmed Stefanick’s point about having joy no matter what happens in your life. “Every morning, we should always thank God, no matter what. Because if we have to walk out the door, we don’t know what could happen that day. Give God thanks for being alive.”

The first session focused on how and why we should live with joy. With enthusiasm, Stefanick explained that God made people for love, and life is the love story of the Christian faithful. By remembering this, he explained, we can be better Christians and “have an awesome life”. Using the Profession of Faith, Stefanick explained, “This love story starts very simply with ‘I believe in one God.’” Expounding on how those words are the foundation of our love story with God, Stefanick again reminded the participants that God created us for love, articulating, “You’re a big deal because the God of love made you for himself.”

As a husband, father of six and grandfather to four, Stefanick is an embodiment of the joy of the Gospel. Throughout his presentation, he touched on his love story with his wife and children. He shared how even in the midst of trials, challenges and tribulations of their faith journey, his family continues to have joy in their lives because of their faith in — and love of — Christ. He concluded the first session by inviting participants to make the Lord the center of their lives to bring them joy.

After a brief intercession, Stefanick shared four of his nine rules for living a more joyful life. The first one was to give thanks. “This is God’s will for you,” explained Stefanick. “He doesn’t want you to be miserable because he created you for joy.” 

Love yourself was the second rule Stefanick presented to the audience, explaining that we must recognize that we are lovable. So, we should be kind to ourselves, affirm ourselves, and love ourselves with our actions. This led him to convey the third rule which was to make friends because we need each other for our physical and spiritual health. The third rule really resonated with people because as Stefanick challenged the participants to start a small group to share and grow deeper in their faith with others, Pruter said many parishioners accepted and signed up to participate in small groups. As a result, the parish “plans to have groups for young adults, seniors, couples with children, etc.”

The last rule he shared was to frame your mind with faith. “It’s not just part of the picture of life, it’s the frame where you see everything; your birth, your struggles, what happens in your life,” Stefanick said. “The joy of the Lord must be your strength.”

Julieta Limardo, a student at the University of West Florida, attended the event with Catholic Agros, her campus ministry group. The message that will stick with Limardo is, “We are made for joy. Our actions are to seek joy, and if we have no faith, we have no joy in our lives.”

Leesan Villa also expressed how much she appreciated the pastoral message from Stefanick. In fact, Villa bought Stefanick’s book I Am for her friend who is suffering with the hope that her friend can begin positive affirmations in life. “I’m sending it up to Connecticut because I want her to start seeing the beauty that God sees in her.”

St. Paul parishioner Judy Galbavy, another organizer for the event, shared that Reboot was a huge success. She expressed that “many attendees still talk about what a meaningful event it was for them.”