RESTORE
This chapter from the BFG Handbook (Christian Edition of the Tao Te Ching) presents the gospel through a new "Expression" of God’s Love to RESTORE the Truth.
Chapter 2 from the BFG Handbook (Christian Edition of the Tao Te Ching) presents the gospel through a new “Expression” of God’s Love to RESTORE people to the Truth.
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Chapter 2: Embracing Dualities
If beauty is recognized in the world 1
Then ugliness arises
If good is recognized in the world 2
Then bad arises
Spirit and flesh form each other
Difficult and easy define one another
Long and short are measured against each other
High and low contrast with each other
Music and tone harmonize each other
Front and back follow each other
Therefore, the Son of God 3
Achieves His purpose but not by His own actions 4
Conveys the teachings but not by His own words
Holds all things together but not by controlling
Creates all but does not possess
Serves all but does not seek glory
Fulfills the promise to all but does not claim it
Since He does not claim anything
Nothing is ever lost
Beauty Seen and Beauty Within
“If beauty is recognized in the world
Then ugliness arises”
Chapter 2 of the Christian edition of the Tao Te Ching explores the principle of divine balance, where opposites exist in relationship to one another, giving meaning and context to life. It begins by recognizing the paradoxical nature of the world: beauty is defined by the existence of ugliness, and good is defined by the presence of bad. This mirrors the biblical understanding of creation, where light and darkness were both present in the beginning (Genesis 1:1-5). In the same way, the Christian worldview acknowledges the reality of suffering and sin as part of the fallen world, yet also the existence of redemption and beauty found in Christ. This chapter emphasizes that opposites are not to be feared or avoided but are essential to understanding the fullness of God’s creation and divine order.
The chapter opens with a simple truth about how we see. The moment we name something beautiful, we also start to notice what is not. Beauty and ugliness show up together because we measure one against the other. Left alone, that habit turns into constant comparing: faces, bodies, homes, whole lives.
“Do not adorn yourselves outwardly by braiding your hair and by wearing gold ornaments or fine clothing; rather, let your adornment be the inner self with the lasting beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in God’s sight.”
1 Peter 3:3-4NRSVue
St. Peter, in the verse this line points to, moves our eyes from the outside to the inside. Real beauty is not something we put on; it grows in a heart at peace with God. God Himself sees this way. When Samuel looked at the tall, impressive sons of Jesse, the Lord told him to look deeper.
“…Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the LORD sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart.”
1 Samuel 16:7ESV
So this line is not a reason to despise beauty. Creation is good, and its beauty reflects the Creator. The point is to see beauty the way God sees it, and to let His love, not the world’s comparisons, decide what is lovely. The most beautiful love the world has ever seen shone from the face of Christ on the Cross, a face the prophet said had “no beauty or majesty to attract us” (Isaiah 53:2).
“…the beauty of creation reflects the infinite beauty of the Creator and ought to inspire the respect and submission of man’s intellect and will.”Catechism 341
“Purity of heart… enables us to see according to God, to accept others as ‘neighbors’; it lets us perceive the human body—ours and our neighbor’s—as a temple of the Holy Spirit, a manifestation of divine beauty.”Catechism 2519
You open an app, and within a minute you have seen someone thinner, richer and more stylish, with a cleaner kitchen and happier kids. Nobody said a word, but you walk away feeling less. That is “If beauty is recognized in the world, then ugliness arises,” playing out on a screen. Filters make it worse, because the beauty we compare ourselves to is often not even real. God is not scrolling past you. He looks at the heart, and He calls what He made in you good.
Try this today: The next time you catch yourself comparing, thank God for one good thing in that person and one good thing in you.
Good and Bad Side by Side
“If good is recognized in the world
Then bad arises”
The same is true of good and bad. When we know what is good, we also see clearly what falls short of it. Job felt this sharply. He had trusted God and lived uprightly, and still trouble came. He cried out honestly, and God did not turn away from his questions.
“But when I looked for good, evil came, and when I waited for light, darkness came.”
Job 30:26NRSVue
The Christian faith is careful here. Evil is not a second power equal to God, and God is not its author. Everything He made is good. Evil is what happens when that good is twisted or lost, above all through sin. But God is so good and so powerful that He can draw good even out of evil, as Joseph told the brothers who had sold him.
“As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive…”
Genesis 50:20ESV
The greatest example is the Cross. The worst thing ever done, the killing of God’s own Son, became the source of our salvation. So when good and bad arrive together in our lives, we do not lose heart. We cling to the good, and we trust God with the rest.
“God is in no way, directly or indirectly, the cause of moral evil. He permits it, however, because he respects the freedom of his creatures and, mysteriously, knows how to derive good from it…”Catechism 311
“…God, by his grace that ‘abounded all the more’, brought the greatest of goods: the glorification of Christ and our redemption. But for all that, evil never becomes a good.”Catechism 312
Some weeks it all comes at once. You get the job offer the same day your mom calls with test results. Your baby takes her first steps the week your marriage hits a wall. The group chat is celebrating a birthday while you are quietly grieving. Chapter 2 is honest: “If good is recognized in the world, then bad arises.” Faith does not mean pretending the bad is fine. It means trusting that God is still good in the middle of it, and that He wastes nothing, not even this.
Try this today: Write down one hard thing you are facing, and next to it one way God has already been faithful to you.
Spirit and Flesh
“Spirit and flesh form each other”
Next comes the first of the chapter’s pairs. “Spirit and flesh” can sound like a fight, and St. Paul, in the passage this line points to, admits that it often is. Yet the chapter says they “form each other.” Each one shows the other more clearly, and both meet in the same human heart.
“Live by the Spirit, I say, and do not gratify the desires of the flesh. For what the flesh desires is opposed to the Spirit, and what the Spirit desires is opposed to the flesh…”
Galatians 5:16-17NRSVue
Here “flesh” does not mean the body. Our body is good, made by God and destined to rise. “Flesh” means the pull in us toward selfishness and sin. Each of us is body and soul together, one person, and that is exactly where the battle is fought: in what we do with our eyes, our hands, our time and our words.
The struggle also teaches us. We learn what the Spirit is like by seeing what the flesh produces, and we learn what the flesh is by tasting the Spirit’s fruit. Every time we choose the Spirit, the next choice gets a little easier. Paul shows what the Spirit grows in a life that follows Him.
“By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control…”
Galatians 5:22-23NRSVue
“Because man is a composite being, spirit and body, there already exists a certain tension in him; a certain struggle of tendencies between ‘spirit’ and ‘flesh’ develops.”Catechism 2516
“The human body shares in the dignity of ‘the image of God’…”Catechism 364
The Church holds both truths together: the body is good and worthy of honor, and the battle against sin is real. The Holy Spirit helps us win it.
You promised yourself an early night, and past midnight you are still watching “one more” episode. You meant to be patient with your kids, and you snapped before breakfast. You wanted to pray, and you checked your email instead. That is the tug between spirit and flesh, and every honest person feels it. You are not a bad Christian for feeling it. The question is which one you feed. The Spirit grows strong in small, faithful choices made again and again.
Try this today: Choose one habit that feeds the flesh, and trade it today for a short prayer to the Holy Spirit.
Hard and Easy, High and Low
“Difficult and easy define one another
Long and short are measured against each other
High and low contrast with each other
Music and tone harmonize each other
Front and back follow each other”
The chapter continues by listing various dualities: spirit and flesh, difficult and easy, long and short, high and low, front and back. These dualities reflect how God’s creation is inextricably tied to contrasts that give depth and meaning. From a Christian perspective, this idea finds its fulfillment in the life of Jesus Christ, who embodies both divinity and humanity—two seemingly opposite natures united in one person. Jesus’ life is a perfect example of how balance in God’s plan is achieved. He is both fully God and fully man, existing in a harmony that surpasses human understanding. His purpose on Earth was not achieved through human striving but through perfect submission to the will of the Father.
The chapter goes on with more pairs. We only know what “easy” means because we have known “difficult.” A day feels long next to a short one. A mountain is high because a valley is low. Notes and tones come together to make music, and front and back belong to the same thing. None of these pairs makes sense alone.
“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven”
Ecclesiastes 3:1ESV
This is how God made the world: full of differences that serve each other. No one has every gift, and no season lasts forever. The strong help the weak, the young learn from the old, and the easy seasons give us strength for the hard ones. St. Paul learned to live through all of it with Christ beside him.
“I know what it is to have little, and I know what it is to have plenty. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being well-fed and of going hungry…”
Philippians 4:12NRSVue
Music is a good picture of the Christian life. A melody needs high notes and low notes, sound and silence. In the same way, when we offer Him our hard days and easy ones, our ups and downs, God weaves them into one song of praise.
“God wills the interdependence of creatures… Creatures exist only in dependence on each other, to complete each other, in the service of each other.”Catechism 340
“These differences belong to God’s plan, who wills that each receive what he needs from others, and that those endowed with particular ‘talents’ share the benefits with those who need them.”Catechism 1937
Think about your playlist. The songs you love most probably have quiet parts and loud parts, slow verses and a big chorus. If every note were the same, you would skip it. Life is like that. The hard semester makes graduation sweet. The tight month teaches you what really matters. The friend who is strong where you are weak makes you both better. Chapter 2 says “Music and tone harmonize each other.” In God’s hands, even the low notes of your life belong in the song.
Try this today: Thank God today for one hard thing that taught you something, and for one person whose gifts fill in where you fall short.
The Son Who Does the Father’s Work
“Therefore, the Son of God
Achieves His purpose but not by His own actions
Conveys the teachings but not by His own words
Holds all things together but not by controlling”
The passage highlights the life of the Son of God, who achieves His purpose without direct action, conveys teachings without self-promotion, and holds all things together without controlling them. This can be understood in the context of Jesus’ humble approach to His mission on Earth. In John 5:19-20, Jesus explains that He does only what He sees the Father doing, illustrating that His actions are not self-originating but in perfect alignment with God’s will. Similarly, Jesus teaches not for His own glory, but for the glory of the Father, as seen in John 17:1-5. He serves all but does not seek personal recognition, fulfilling the prophecy of the servant leader in Isaiah 53:3.
Then the chapter turns to the One who unites all these opposites: the Son of God. At His baptism the Father spoke from heaven: “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:17). Jesus is fully God and fully man, heaven and earth joined in one Person.
Yet look at how He lives. He “achieves His purpose but not by His own actions.” This does not mean Jesus did nothing. It means He never acted apart from the Father. Everything He did came from that perfect union of love. He is the Son, and He delights to do what His Father does.
“…Very truly, I tell you, the Son can do nothing on his own but only what he sees the Father doing, for whatever the Father does, the Son does likewise.”
John 5:19NRSVue
He also “conveys the teachings but not by His own words.” Jesus said the words He spoke came from the Father. And He “holds all things together but not by controlling.” All creation holds together in Him (Colossians 1:17), yet He forces no one. He invites, He waits, and He respects our freedom to say yes.
“…The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works.”
John 14:10ESV
“The Son of God, who came down ‘from heaven, not to do (his) own will, but the will of him who sent (him)’, said on coming into the world, ‘Lo, I have come to do your will, O God.’”Catechism 606
“Christ’s whole earthly life—his words and deeds, his silences and sufferings, indeed his manner of being and speaking—is Revelation of the Father.”Catechism 516
“God is the sovereign master of his plan. But to carry it out he also makes use of his creatures’ co-operation.”Catechism 306
Jesus does not lack power. He chooses to work in perfect union with the Father, and God gives His creatures a real share in His work.
Most of us feel we have to hold everything together: the job, the kids’ schedules, the bills, the group project where nobody else is doing their part. So we grip harder, check our phones more and try to control every outcome. Then we lie awake. Chapter 2 shows another way. The Son of God, who really does hold all things together, does it “not by controlling.” He does what He sees the Father doing and trusts Him. You can do the same: do your part well, then let go of the rest.
Try this today: Name one thing you are trying to control today, and pray: “Jesus, You hold this. I will do my part and trust You with the rest.”
Nothing Is Ever Lost
“Creates all but does not possess
Serves all but does not seek glory
Fulfills the promise to all but does not claim it
Since He does not claim anything
Nothing is ever lost”
The balance described in the chapter culminates in the idea that Jesus creates all things yet does not possess them, serves all without seeking glory, and fulfills God’s promise without claiming it for Himself. This reflects the humility of Christ, who came not to be served but to serve (Mark 10:45). Jesus’ life was marked by selflessness and a continual pointing away from Himself to God’s glory. As Paul writes in Philippians 2:6-8, although He was in the form of God, Jesus did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but humbled Himself, becoming obedient to the point of death.
The chapter ends with the heart of Christ. All things were made through Him, yet He “creates all but does not possess.” He does not hoard creation; He shares it, and He even shares His own life with us. Though He was God, He did not cling to His rights.
“who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant…”
Philippians 2:6-7ESV
He “serves all but does not seek glory.” He washed His disciples’ feet and gave His life for us (Mark 10:45). He “fulfills the promise to all but does not claim it.” Every promise God ever made finds its “Yes” in Him (2 Corinthians 1:20), and He gives the glory to the Father.
Then comes the beautiful ending: “Since He does not claim anything, nothing is ever lost.” What is given in love, God keeps. The same is true for us. Whatever we let go of for His sake, we find again in Him, like a seed that falls into the ground and bears much fruit (John 12:24).
“And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day.”
John 6:39ESV
“…God created all things ‘not to increase his glory, but to show it forth and to communicate it’, for God has no other reason for creating than his love and goodness…”Catechism 293, quoting St. Bonaventure
“We may be sure that none of our acts of love will be lost, nor any of our acts of sincere concern for others. No single act of love for God will be lost, no generous effort is meaningless, no painful endurance is wasted.”Pope Francis, Evangelii Gaudium 279
You stayed late to fix the mistake, and your boss thanked someone else. You cooked, cleaned and drove everyone everywhere, and nobody noticed. You posted something kind and it barely got a like. It is easy to feel that what we give just disappears. Chapter 2 says the opposite: “Nothing is ever lost.” Jesus served without seeking glory, and the Father did not forget Him. He does not forget you either. Every quiet sacrifice offered in love is kept by God, and not one is wasted.
Try this today: Do one helpful thing today without telling anyone, and offer it to God as a gift only He will see.
Living the Chapter
The whole chapter, put into practice
The key message of Chapter 2 is that in divine balance, when we live in harmony with God’s will, we are not driven by selfish ambitions or the desire to control but are able to serve others humbly and selflessly, trusting God for the outcome. This idea calls Christians to embrace both the high and the low, the difficult and the easy, and to live in the reality of God’s kingdom, where opposites are reconciled through the person and work of Jesus Christ. As the chapter concludes, it teaches that by not claiming anything for ourselves, we align with Christ’s example, where nothing is lost in His sacrificial love and service.
Chapter 2 gives us a way to live in a world of opposites. We will have beautiful days and ugly ones, good news and bad, hard seasons and easy ones. We do not have to deny any of them, and we do not have to be ruled by them. Christ holds them together.
So we follow the Son. We act in union with the Father, we pass on His words instead of our own, and we stop trying to control what only God can hold. We create, serve and give without needing to own it or be praised for it. And we rest in the promise that ends the chapter: “Since He does not claim anything, nothing is ever lost.”
“…always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.”
1 Corinthians 15:58ESV
“…man, who is the only creature on earth which God willed for itself, cannot fully find himself except through a sincere gift of himself.”Second Vatican Council, Gaudium et Spes 24
“This proper way of serving others also leads to humility. The one who serves does not consider himself superior to the one served, however miserable his situation at the moment may be.”Pope Benedict XVI, Deus Caritas Est 35
Your coworker is having a rough week. Your teenager is moody. A neighbor is struggling and too proud to ask for help. You may not have big answers, and you do not need the credit. Chapter 2 shows a quieter way: show up, serve, and let God do the rest. Bring the coffee. Listen without fixing. Pray for them by name. People rarely remember who was the most impressive. They remember who was there on their low day. That is how the Son lived, and that is how His light reaches others through you.
Try this today: Pick one person who is in a low season, and serve them in one practical way this week without being asked.
RENEWAL
The Trinitarian M.A.P. is the method for RENEWAL, where God’s Love shapes our MINDSET, Trust in the Son directs our AIM, and Faith in the Holy Spirit guides our PRACTICE.
This chapter offers a new “Method” for the New Evangelization to RENEW our hearts and minds through the Trinitarian M.A.P. Bring this chapter into your day with the BFG Companion App. Pick Chapter 2 and an area of your life, and get Guidance made for you.
Renewal starts in the mind. Chapter 2 opens with “If beauty is recognized in the world, then ugliness arises.” The moment we call something beautiful, we start comparing, and comparing can quietly turn into judging, even judging ourselves in the mirror. St. Peter points us to a different beauty: “the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit” (1 Peter 3:4). God’s love does not grade us on looks, likes or success. So we begin by letting His love, not the world’s scoreboard, tell us who we are and what is truly beautiful.
The chapter goes on: “If good is recognized in the world, then bad arises.” Job knew this ache: “When I hoped for good, evil came” (Job 30:26). A mind shaped by God’s love does not pretend evil is not real, and it does not believe evil has the last word. God is not the author of evil, but He can bring good out of it, as He did through the Cross. So when good and bad sit side by side, we think like children of a loving Father: He is still at work, and His love is stronger.
Try this: When you catch yourself comparing today, stop and pray: “Father, help me see what You call beautiful.”
1 Peter 3:3-4NRSVue “Do not adorn yourselves outwardly by braiding your hair and by wearing gold ornaments or fine clothing; rather, let your adornment be the inner self with the lasting beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in God’s sight.”
Job 30:26NRSVue “But when I looked for good, evil came, and when I waited for light, darkness came.”
More Scripture: Romans 5:3-4 · Ecclesiastes 3:1
A renewed mind needs a direction, and Chapter 2 points us to the Son: “Therefore, the Son of God achieves His purpose but not by His own actions.” Jesus says, “the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing” (John 5:19). Even the Son of God kept His eyes on the Father. So we aim the same way. Before we chase a goal, a promotion or a plan, we look to Christ and ask what the Father is already doing, and we join Him there.
The chapter names opposites that need each other: “Difficult and easy define one another,” and “High and low contrast with each other.” Our aim is not to escape every hard thing or to always be on top. St. Paul learned to be content in plenty and in want, because his aim was Christ (Philippians 4:12-13). The Son “holds all things together but not by controlling,” so we can stop gripping every outcome. We aim at Him, trust Him with the high days and the low ones, and let Him hold what we cannot.
Try this: Before your next big decision, ask Jesus, “What is the Father doing here?” and wait a moment before you act.
John 5:19NRSVue “…Very truly, I tell you, the Son can do nothing on his own but only what he sees the Father doing, for whatever the Father does, the Son does likewise.”
Colossians 1:17 “He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.”
More Scripture: Philippians 4:12-13 · Philippians 2:6-7
Renewal becomes real in daily life. Chapter 2 says, “Spirit and flesh form each other.” St. Paul admits the flesh and the Spirit “are in conflict with each other,” and he gives the way through: “walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh” (Galatians 5:16-17). The body is not the enemy; it is God’s gift. The struggle is between the pull toward sin and the Spirit’s quiet lead. So we practice small choices that let the Spirit lead: a kind word instead of a sharp one, a prayer instead of one more scroll.
Then the chapter shows how the Son lives: “Creates all but does not possess. Serves all but does not seek glory.” The Holy Spirit forms that same heart in us. We serve at home, at work and online without keeping score or needing credit. We give our time and gifts and let God keep the record. And the chapter promises, “Since He does not claim anything, nothing is ever lost.” Every hidden kindness and every unseen sacrifice offered in love is safe in God’s hands.
Try this: Before you answer in anger today, pause and pray, “Holy Spirit, lead me,” then choose the kinder words.
Galatians 5:16NRSVue “Live by the Spirit, I say, and do not gratify the desires of the flesh.”
Galatians 5:22-23NRSVue “By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control…”
More Scripture: Matthew 6:3-4 · Matthew 16:25
In short: think humbly, aim at what is eternal, live by the Spirit. Through beauty and ugliness, highs and lows, let God’s love define you, keep your eyes on the Son who serves without claiming, and let the Spirit teach you that nothing given in love is ever lost.
RESPOND
Renewal brings the transformation of our spirit with ardor, empowering us to RESPOND to the call of holiness and make disciples of all nations. This encourages meaningful dialogue to embrace shared truths that transcend cultural and religious boundaries.
Renewal does not end with us. When God changes a heart, He sends it out. Chapter 2 shows how the Son of God went: He “serves all but does not seek glory” and “conveys the teachings but not by His own words,” passing on only what He received from the Father. That is good news for every missionary: you do not have to be the star, and you do not need a message of your own. You carry His words, not yours, and nothing given in love is ever lost.
In 1983, Saint John Paul II called the Church to an evangelization that is “new in its ardor, new in its methods, new in its expression.” The Gospel never changes. The way we carry it must be alive for our time. Chapter 2 shows why: a world that sorts everything into beautiful and ugly, winners and losers, needs fresh words that point to the Son who holds all things together.
Ardor is the fire of a heart that has been loved by God. People feel it before they hear a single word. Chapter 2 says the Son “serves all but does not seek glory.” The fire burns brightest in a heart that does not need the spotlight.
Use the words people use today: simple, honest and personal. Share your story, not a lecture. Chapter 2 says the Son “conveys the teachings but not by His own words,” so share what you have received from Him, not opinions of your own.
Meet people where they are: on the phone in their hand. The BFG Handbook and the BFG Companion turn one conversation into a path to Christ and His Church. Chapter 2 says the Son “achieves His purpose but not by His own actions.” Our tools work the same way: they do not convert anyone; they make room for God to work.
Use the words people use today: simple, honest and personal. Share your story, not a lecture. Chapter 2 says the Son “conveys the teachings but not by His own words,” so share what you have received from Him, not opinions of your own.
What my life was like before I really met Jesus.
How He met me, and the moment things began to change.
What is different now, and the hope I carry. Like the chapter’s “difficult and easy,” what hard season taught you something the easy days never could?
Meet people where they are: on the phone in their hand. The BFG Handbook and the BFG Companion turn one conversation into a path to Christ and His Church. Chapter 2 says the Son “achieves His purpose but not by His own actions.” Our tools work the same way: they do not convert anyone; they make room for God to work.
Every chapter has its own song and is written in a language people of every faith can understand. A doorway for dialogue. Chapter 2, Embracing Dualities, helps anyone caught between good days and bad ones, or worn out from comparing themselves to others.
A friend shares a struggle. Together, pick a chapter and an area of life (start with Chapter 2 when someone is caught between highs and lows, or feels their hard work goes unseen). In seconds: a reflection, the M.A.P., a saint, a prayer, Scripture, a song and a church nearby. Send it by email, PDF or a share link.
Hard question? Ask it together. Answers are grounded in Catholic teaching, the saints and the BFG Handbook. Talk or type. Try asking together: “If God is good, why do good and bad always seem to come together?”
Pray the Rosary with a guided voice, the daily mysteries and beads that follow along. Pray it with someone, even over the phone. From the Joyful to the Sorrowful to the Glorious Mysteries, the Rosary walks with Jesus and Mary through high and low, just as Chapter 2 does.
Catholic churches near anyone, with Mass and Confession times, directions, and one tap to add a time to the calendar. Every conversation can end at a church door. There Jesus, who “serves all but does not seek glory,” gives Himself to us in the humble form of bread.
Morning, midday and evening prayer reminders, a daily streak and a steady prayer rhythm help a new believer keep going. A steady rhythm carries us through the hard days and the easy ones, because “difficult and easy define one another.”
Free to start, no card needed. Read aloud in 48 languages.
One tool that walks with a person from the first question to the church door.
Jesus sent His apostles first to Jerusalem, then to Judea and Samaria, then to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8). Start where you are. Chapter 2 says the Son “holds all things together,” so the people right around you, on their high days and their low ones, are already held by Him.
- Pray the Rosary together on Pray My Rosary.
- Bless your children at bedtime.
- Share a Guidance with a spouse or child who is struggling.
- Find Sunday Mass times together with Church Finder.
- Read Chapter 2 at dinner and ask: “What was hard today, what was easy, and where was God in both?”
- Text a verse from your Guidance.
- Ask, “How can I pray for you?” and pray right then.
- Invite a friend to Mass, then go for coffee.
- Send the line: “Since He does not claim anything, nothing is ever lost.”
- Be the calm, kind one.
- Pray on your lunch break with a reminder.
- Start a small chapter group that meets once a week. Begin with Chapter 2, Embracing Dualities.
- Respect the rules: invite, never push.
- Listen for the moment: “Things have been hard.”
- Offer: “Can I send you something that helped me?”
- Share the Chapter 2 song.
- Ask good questions and really listen.
- Share your three-part story.
- Open Ask BFG together when a question comes up.
- When a friend feels unseen at work, share the line “Serves all but does not seek glory,” and remind them that God sees.
- Visit the sick, the elderly and the lonely; pray the Rosary with them.
- Serve at a food bank.
- Welcome newcomers at Mass.
- Join your parish evangelization team.
- Ask shops, cafés and offices to display a BFG card with a QR code.
- Offer a short lunch talk on faith at work.
- Business owners: offer the Companion to staff as a free gift, never a requirement.
- Go where people already gather, and be the friendly one who listens.
- Pray quietly for the people around you.
- When a talk turns real, share a Guidance or the chapter song.
- Wear or carry a simple sign of your faith, like a cross or a rosary, that can start a conversation.
- At a game day, winning and losing sit side by side; share that Chapter 2 says “high and low contrast with each other,” and God holds both.
- Host a Chapter 2 “Embracing Dualities” night, a Handbook chapter night, a Rosary night or an “Ask Anything” faith night.
- Show the Companion on a big screen and let people try it.
- We did this at our free conference, The New Evangelization in the Age of AI, at Christ Cathedral.
- Share a Guidance, a chapter song or a Scripture card. Try: “Since He does not claim anything, nothing is ever lost.”
- One post can reach someone you will never meet.
- Join a parish or diocese mission trip.
- The Companion speaks 48 languages, so you leave behind something that keeps speaking after you go home.
- Chapter 2’s pairs of opposites are understood in every culture, a natural bridge to the Son of God who holds all things together.
- Your parish ministries, the Legion of Mary, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, Catholic Charities, prison, hospital and campus ministries, and mission groups.
- Bring the BFG tools to their work.
You will not always be thanked. Some of your best work will go unseen. But Chapter 2 says the Son “serves all but does not seek glory,” and promises that “nothing is ever lost.” Go with humility. Go with joy. Go together. The same Spirit who renewed you now sends you, to serve as Jesus served and to trust the Father with every result.
God who holds all things together, Holy Spirit, set my heart on fire. Jesus, send me to the one You love. Father, make me Your witness today. Amen.
NRSVue © 2021 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. Scripture quotations marked ESV are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025. The ESV text may not be quoted in any publication made available to the public by a Creative Commons license. The ESV may not be translated in whole or in part into any other language. Used by permission. All rights reserved.