Francis took seriously the inspiring words of Jesus on the crucifix.  He knew that it was his mission to accomplish.  And so, he returned to his wealthy father and gave up his inheritance.  He lived with the poor and began to preach and live the Gospel of Jesus.  The people saw Jesus in Francis.  Francis with the help of the people started building Churches around the area to care for the poor, the sick, the rejected.

Who is the Church?

Afterwards Saint Francis took action to physically repair the structure of the San Damiano church, although he eventually realized that God's message to him was to restore the entire Catholic Church as a whole body rather than literally repair one stone structure. The San Damiano cross which spoke to Francis currently hangs in the Basilica of Saint Clare in Assisi.

The open eyes of Jesus on the cross seemed to lock him in a stare that was both intimidating and beckoning at the same time. He couldn’t look away as feelings of doubt and fear, guilt and desire welled up within him. “Lord, what do you want me to do?” he asked. “Show me what you want me to do with my life.”

And the Lord answered! A voice as clear as the day responded: “Francis, go and rebuild my church which, as you see, is falling down.”

That was all he heard. That was all he needed to hear. It took a bit longer, however, to realize that Jesus wasn’t asking him to physically rebuild San Damiano as well as a few other rundown churches near Assisi. He did that, of course, but it gradually dawned on him that his vocation was to rebuild the church, the human institution that was perilously close to falling apart.