For the longest time, I've always been one to defend my Catholic faith. I'd get into debates and sometimes even heated conversations about what the Catholic Church actually teaches and lives. It was as if I was trying to prove something. Trying to prove the truth and goodness of the Catholic Church.
But it's always easier to speak than act. It's always easier to abide by rules than to genuinely and zealously live them out. It's easy to get into a talk with someone and back up what your faith believes with scripture. It's hard to boldly live out the Christian life of grace, forgiveness, and love that we're called to.
See also: Even Amongst Scandal, The Catholic Church Is Still Beautiful
But somewhere along the line, I lost sight of "being." Being a servant to strangers. Being a peace and comfort for the broken. Being an abundance of love and compassion for every human you cross paths with. Being a listening ear for the lonely and confused. All of these things got pushed to the side for the sake of debate and facts.
In the middle of standing up for my faith, I forgot to BE my faith. I forgot to live so zealously, gracefully, and joyfully that people stop and wonder "what sets her apart from other Christians?" I forgot to love so fully and overwhelmingly that people wonder "how?" When my actions speak so loudly and boldly for themselves, that's when true conviction and conversion will begin. No biblical or historical facts will ever win over someone's entire heart. Sure they shed truth and light on a religion that's so widely misinformed on, but only authentic friendship, immense love, complete forgiveness, and a heart of humility and service will capture the attention of the souls you interact with daily.