Process

God is always watching over us and protecting us, and arranging circumstances so that “all things work for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28) Sometimes as this process unfolds we go through periods of disruption, loss, sadness, frustration and injustice. I’ve seen it happen again and again in my own life as well in the lives of people I know.

I like to call it a “process” when this happens because, according to my dictionary, a process is (1) “a forward or onward movement, as to an objective or a goal, or (2) “a natural phenomenon marked by gradual changes that lead toward a particular result.”

Keeping this definition in mind may help us look at those dark periods in our lives in a way that makes sense out of them. The disappointment or even tragedy is part of a “forward or onward movement;” that is, it will not remain in the same unpleasant condition forever. Our suffering is leading somewhere. (Think of Christ on the cross as an example).

The second definition of process is even more hopeful. There is a result (or objective) to our difficulties, and this result is something that God has in mind as he is acting in our lives.

And so in those times of difficulty we are able to think that “this too shall pass,” and also that God is working things out that we don’t understand at present but which will be revealed in time. Sometimes it takes a long time; other times the whole process unfolds rather quickly.

I just saw it happen with one of my students. He lost X and was very upset. Just two weeks later, his life changed and he found himself enjoying Y and understanding that the things that caused the loss were necessary in order for him to be blessed by Y. (I hope this isn’t too vague for you, but I didn’t want to go in to telling the whole story.) And so X became a source of great blessing.

Has that happened in your life before? I know it has in mine. And if you’re going through a difficult time right now, remember that you are in a process that will ultimately lead towards a good. That’s how God arranges things in our lives, thanks be to God.

May he bless you always.

It doesn't all depend on you.

God created everything. God is in everything. God—Father, Son and Holy Spirit—is in everything. God—Father, Son and Holy Spirit—is in you and me. At all times.

In our scattered lives, we often forget this, lose touch with it, block it out or even ignore it. But God doesn’t block us out. “I am with you always,” says Jesus, “until the end of the world.” (Matthew 28:20)

Oh, if we could only just simply rest in that reality, be in touch with Father, Son and Holy Spirit within us and rest there with eyes closed even just for a moment or a minute. If only we could consciously draw on the strength and courage and power that is already within us. After all, as St. Paul wrote to Timothy, “God did not give us a spirit of cowardice but rather of power and love and self-control.” (2 Tim 1:8)

Give everything over to that spirit. Stop trying to make things work on your own. At all time, it is God working within you that brings your projects, your wishes, your hopes and dreams to reality if they are part of His plan for you. And if they are not? Well then, wait until his plan is revealed to you in the ordinary circumstances of your life.

One of the most wonderful things about Christianity is that we never have to be concerned that everything counts on us alone. When I began writing this reflection, I had absolutely no idea what I was going to write about. But then an inspiration was given to me, and guided my fingers line by line as I made my way down the page. Thanks be to God alone.

Take time today to rest in the Presence, to listen to His promptings, to let Him tell you what to say, or do, or even think thoughts that lie buried deep underneath the usual ordinary chatter that goes on in your mind.

And then give thanks. God bless you.

Everything you need

I am interrupting my series of reflections on “Signs that you’re having a spiritual awakening” to share with you a reflection I had last night after meditation and again this morning. Take what you can from it and leave the rest behind.

It’s really very simple, having just a few points:

·         God is continually giving me everything I need.

·         That means there is no need for me to ask for anything for myself. My intercessory prayer can be devoted to others.

·         And since God continually gives me everything I need, if there is something I think I need or want that I do not have, it is because I don’t really need it. So I can rest in peace.

Have a blessed day!

Losing control

Today we look at the first of the twelve “Signs that you are spiritually awakening” which was posted yesterday. Notice that I just used the present tense—you are spiritually awakening—rather than the past tense—you have had a spiritual awakening. The awakening itself is a process that takes time. What these twelve items suggest is what we discover happening in our lives if we are consciously practicing habits of prayer, mind and spirit that do produce a gradual spiritual awakening in us. After all, we are all in via, “on the way.” So here is the first of the list:

1. An increased tendency to let things happen rather than to make things happen.

It takes so much work, so much energy, so much preoccupation for us to serve the illusion that we are in control of what happens in our lives, or that we can exercise control to make sure that something we want happens.

 And more often than not, our efforts don’t produce the effect we wanted them to produce. Something happens. Something gets in the way. Someone foils our plans, often unwittingly. And yet, we continue to try, because the need to control things is an instinctive urge that we are born with. And for many, that need takes over and the illusion that we are, indeed, in control, runs our lives.

Consider King Herod and his reaction when he finds out that a great king has been born in Bethlehem. Right away, he sets up his program of control: the Magi are to report back to him after they have found the Christ Child, and then he will put his henchmen to work. But things don’t turn out that way, and Herod, enraged, orders the murder of all male children under the age of 2. And yet, even this doesn’t do the trick.

The Good News of the story revolves around the mysterious: angels and dreams. Joseph is warned in a dream to take his family to Egypt. The Magi are told in a dream to take a different route home to avoid Herod putting his plan into action. Herod, at last, is not in control; God is. But because of Herod’s rage, thousands of families are made to suffer.

So, with all this in mind, I have a few questions for you:

·         Do you have any programs in place to control what is happening in your life? Are you really in charge? How often to your programs succeed? And what is it costing you to live your life this way? And how are others made to suffer because of your imaginary sense of control?

·         Have you ever noticed that many if not most of the wonderful things that have happened in your life are not the result of your planning or plotting, but rather happen, it seems, by accident (or we might say, by Providence)?

·         Have you learned yet that the issues you are most concerned about, or most anxious about, tend to work themselves out in unexpected and often wonderful ways once we have let go of our desire to control and rather simply put things “in the hand of God”?

It takes practice. It takes thought. It takes prayer, especially meditation or contemplative prayer.

Here is a simple mediation for those who have never done it before: Close your eyes and pay attention to your breathing without controlling it. As you exhale, let go of your urge to control. As you inhale, inhale your faith that God is working things out. If you’d like, as you exhale, you might think the words “into your hands, O Lord,” and as you inhale, “Lord, increase my faith.”  Or else simply follow your breath and remain without words. If you’ve never done this before, try it for a minute or 2.

God will do for you what you cannot do for yourself.

This Reflection is based on the readings for the Second Sunday of Advent, Year C.

For one who is truly committed to moving closer to the Lord during this Advent season, today’s Gospel passage is filled with hope. Let me explain.

I remember a time over 30 years ago when I began considering making a major life change in order to  enter religious life. I mentioned to my Pastor that it seemed that there were too many seemingly insurmountable obstacles standing in my way, and that they were beginning to discourage me.

He answered me by quoting the wonderful passage from Isaiah that we contemplate today: “Every valley shall be filled and every mountain and hill shall be laid low, the winding winds shall be made straight, and the rough ways made smooth . . .”

That passage came true in my life over the next year, until finally I found myself becoming a Novice at Saint Anselm Abbey. And the power of that passage never abated. Again and again and again I have found that the Lord acts in my life to make possible what I thought to be impossible, to send me assistance from all sorts of places I never would have predicted or imagined, to put people into my life—just the right people at the right time to be agents of divine grace in my life.

What was required of me was a firm commitment to move forward. John the Baptist preached a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. Allow me, if you will, to interpret that repentance as the will to move away from anything in our lives that keeps us from moving closer to God, and to take committed and deliberate steps to move towards the God who calls us by name, who sends us graces that sometimes seem miraculous, who provides us with valuable companions on the way, and whose guidance and wisdom continue to light our way. Take special note of those valleys that become raised up for us, and the mountains become laid low, as the path in the direction of our heart’s desire becomes smooth and blessed with wonder upon wonder upon wonder.

That change you have in life, that movement away from something sinful, those tentative steps towards the new life that God is calling you to have this Advent and throughout the coming year? Put your faith in Isaiah’s prophecy, profess your commitment (which is there often along with a certain fear), and take a step forward. A bit at a time, day after day, even hour by hour, towards what might end up becoming the greatest Christmas you have ever had in your life.

God bless you.