Little by Little

Ever felt like living a holy life should be easier than it is? Fr Columba unpacks a line from St Francis de Sales that stopped him in his tracks: a devout life is easy, delightful, and desirable. Drawing on the plain image of building a habit at the gym, he shows how virtue starts hard and becomes easy, and how our own self-sabotage, not just the devil, keeps us stuck. His practical challenge: sto...

Ever been in a crisis with no time to sit down and pray? Fr Columba shares the express novena: nine Memorares said one after another instead of stretched over nine days, a fast, trusted way to call on Our Lady's help. He traces it back to Saint Mother Teresa's community and shares a few small miracles he's seen firsthand, then prays it with you so you'll already know the words next...

Do you find yourself focused on the big stuff while the smaller sins just quietly accumulate? In this episode, Fr Columba draws on the famous broken windows theory from 1990s New York to make a simple but uncomfortable point: the small sins you're ignoring might be exactly what's fuelling the bigger ones. He offers a practical encouragement to look at the low-hanging fruit, deal with the l...

Do you ever feel like you're not actually changing, that you keep falling back into the same patterns no matter how hard you try? In this episode, Fr Columba reflects on breaking his leg and discovering something unexpected: surgery works from the inside, so you don't need a cast on the outside. The change is real, even when you can't see it. He draws out the parallel to the spiritual...

Do you struggle with fear or anxiety? In this episode, Fr Columba shares the simplest solution he's ever come across, and it took him years to find it. List the fear, ask God to take it away, ask God to direct you toward what He'd have you do. It sounds too easy. But it works. Wherever you are, whatever you're afraid of, try it. 🔴  THIS SERIES Little by Little | Episode #276 Little by...

Do you ever wonder why some people are transformed by suffering while others just survive it? In this episode, Fr Columba shares the story of a friend who died young of MS, and what he saw on her face in the hospice chapel: not grief, but glory. Drawing on St Paul's letter to the Romans, a talk by Fr Mike Schmitz, and a memorably dramatic night of very mild sleep deprivation, he explores why t...

Do you think of Christianity as a set of rules? A list of dos and don'ts? In this episode, Fr Columba opens with a striking line from the Acts of the Apostles: the angel doesn't tell the disciples to preach a doctrine or teach a philosophy. He tells them to share "this way of life." Drawing on his own experience of encountering Catholic teaching on the human person for the first...

What does it actually mean to be healed by the blood of Jesus? Recovering from leg surgery, Fr Columba reflects on the slow, hidden work of physical healing as a window into how the soul is healed in the Eucharist and confession. The wound closes because the blood is doing its job. Our part is to stop rushing it. A few unhurried minutes in your pew after Mass do more than we realise. 🔴  THIS SERI...

Do you ever feel like God is irrelevant to your actual daily life? In this episode of Little by Little, Fr Columba leans into a piece of wisdom from Alcoholics Anonymous: every problem we face is, at root, of our own making. Drill into the anxiety, the lost peace, the frustration, and the cause is almost always the same. We are quietly trying to play God. Letting him take that seat back is more pr...

Have you ever skipped prayer and told yourself you were just tired, busy, or stuck on your phone? In this episode of Little by Little, Fr Columba names the harder truth underneath all of it. Every time we cut a corner with God, what we're really saying is "I know best." He shares why daily prayer is the single non-negotiable in the spiritual life, why he still struggles with it himse...

Have you ever braced for a pain that hadn't actually arrived? After breaking his leg, Fr Columba noticed something strange in the hospital: most of what he was feeling wasn't pain at all, it was the fear of pain. Drawing on Arthur Brooks and Jesus in Gethsemane, he reflects on how to tell the two apart, and how Christ meets us in both. An honest, gentle reflection if you're carrying re...

You may have heard, Fr Columba recently broke his leg and is taking some time to rest and recover. While he's off his feet, we're re-showing an old favourite episode, still feels as relevant as ever. Please keep him in your prayers, especially for patience and a steady recovery. Do you spend more time worrying about what's wrong with the Church than actually bringing people to Jesus? I...

Have you ever felt like faith only lives inside church walls or the pages of the Bible? In this episode, Fr Columba takes something as ordinary as water and uses it to trace the whole shape of the Gospel: Christ pouring himself down into our humanity, descending to the lowest place, shattering the gates of hell, and rising so that we rise with him. Drawing on St Francis of Assisi, he shows how cre...

Do you ever ask other people to pray for you? In this episode, Fr Columba reflects on something simple, but often overlooked: the power of other people’s prayers. Drawing on his own experience of struggling through a demanding project, he shares how things shifted in a remarkable way once he asked others to pray for him. While we naturally pray for ourselves, there is something different about the...

Do you ever wonder what you can give back to God, especially during Holy Week? In this episode, Fr Columba reflects on the striking Gospel moment where Mary pours out an extravagant and costly perfume over Jesus. At first, it seems excessive, even wasteful. But Jesus receives it, because it reveals something of His own heart. What she gives, however great, is still only a glimpse of what He has al...

Do you ever feel like you’re consuming more and more good content, but still not growing closer to God? In this episode, Fr Columba challenges a subtle but serious spiritual trap: replacing contact with God with content about God. While good books, podcasts, and videos can inspire us, they are not the goal. Drawing on simple, practical examples, he shows how we can pause, listen, and respond when...

Do you struggle to believe that God truly loves you, not just in theory but in your own experience? In this episode, Fr Columba explores why so many people feel unable to receive God’s love, even when they know it is true. He shows how hidden shame and self-rejection can quietly block us from letting that love in, leaving us feeling distant or numb in prayer. By honestly facing what we believe abo...

Do you find it harder than ever to focus, pray, or pursue the things that really matter? In this episode, Fr Columba explores how constant stimulation and “fast dopamine” habits like endless scrolling can quietly undermine our motivation, discipline, and spiritual life. He explains why the Christian life depends on learning to embrace slower, harder practices like prayer, perseverance, and meaning...

Do you ever feel like your faith stays mostly in theory? In this episode, Fr Columba reflects on the danger of getting “just enough” of God to feel inspired without ever truly being transformed. Using the example of Judas and the Church’s call to prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, he shows that real Christianity is not about proximity to Jesus but becoming like Him. Lent invites us to move beyond id...

Do you ever feel spiritually drained, like you’re giving and giving, but running on empty? In this episode, Fr Columba reflects on why selfless love can feel impossible when we try to sustain it on our own strength. Drawing on the image of Peter stepping out of the boat and the words of Jesus to St Faustina, he shows that trust is not naïve optimism, but the gateway that allows God to act. The Chr...

Are you letting the Gospel flow through your life, or does it stop with you? In this episode, Fr Columba reflects on the responsibility and privilege of sharing the faith we have received. Using the image of living water flowing through a tap, he reminds us that we are not the source of grace — but we are called to let it pass through us. The Gospel is not meant to be hidden, edited, or kept priva...

Do you find yourself telling God information in prayer rather than sharing your heart? In this episode, Fr Columba reflects on the difference between giving God a report and giving Him yourself. Using the image of a father who is never bored by his child, he reminds us that God does not need to be informed — He already knows everything — but He desires relationship. Whether your prayer feels repet...

Do you expect Mass to change you? In this episode, Fr Columba reflects on the quiet but powerful truth that every encounter with God is meant to transform us. Drawing on the image of the Magi returning by a different way, he invites us to examine our expectations at Mass and in prayer, and to rediscover the grace God offers each time we come before Him. Whether you feel distracted, discouraged, or...

Do you find it hard to be vulnerable — even with God? In this episode, Fr Columba reflects on why we hide behind masks, why we fear being truly seen, and how this fear can quietly block love and freedom. Using Adam in the Garden as a mirror for the human heart, he shows how shame and distrust twist our thinking and lead us to perform rather than receive. Whether you feel stuck behind a “fake self”...

Do you find yourself falling into the same sins again, despite your sincere efforts to change? In this episode, Fr Columba reflects on why willpower alone is often not enough to overcome habitual sin, and how spiritual dryness can quietly weaken the soul. Drawing on the Church’s wisdom, he explains how God gives consolation not as a reward, but as a remedy to strengthen us where we are wounded. Wh...