I have a story I want to share for all of you out there who feel far away from the Lord, lost in the desert, in a fog or another, similar mental/spiritual state. This is a story about little bread crumbs from Heaven that led me out of that place of desolation and back into awareness of God’s love and grace.
Can you relate to this tension? Do you struggle to see yourself the way God sees you? Do you really know how God sees you? If I can’t see myself the way God sees me, how can I see others that way? On the surface it seems possible to love others better than I love myself, but is it true?
Last week I began a one year program in the Resilient Catholics Community lead by Dr. Peter Malinoski at soulsandhearts.com. Souls and Hearts was developed to meet the needs of practicing Catholics who struggle with the everyday challenges of life. Grounded in a Catholic anthropology, Souls and Hearts' contributors draw from the psychological sciences to offer Catholics mental health education and information in an online format.
Our priest's homily yesterday was on point. He talked at length about the recent Supreme Court ruling in the Dobbs vs. Jackson Women's Health Organization. He talked about what it meant to be these 3 things: Pro-Catholic, Pro-Life, and Pro-America.
Last July, about a month into this new job, I became pregnant with my first child, and my husband and I welcomed our sweet son in April. We named our son Benedict after Saint Benedict of Nursia, one of our favorite saints. He has been a very important and significant saint in our marriage and relationships, but especially in work. I mean his motto is "ora et labora" ("pray and work"). However, if I’m being honest, sometimes it’s more like having to work at prayer. It isn’t always natural or easy.
This Lent I am reading "This Tremendous Lover" and thumbing through other spiritual readings. I hope that upon reading the wisdom and advice I found that it may prove fruitful and helpful to you this in Lent and beyond.
Over the past few weeks, my inbox and news feeds have slowly filled up with a collection of Lent articles and videos. This probably won't be your first time taking Lent seriously, and if you are like me, there might be an inclination to stick with what's comfortable. That's what I was planning on doing until I came across a few of these recommendations. I haven't landed on one yet, but there's still time to decide. I hope you find something fruitful in these recommendations.
Everyday we are presented with opportunities to practice self-denial and resignation to God's will. If we can't handle a mild irritation, how will we be ready when God calls us to make a truly great sacrifice? The ordinary day filled with ordinary and seemingly mundane tasks is our training; it's where real saints are made.
I think it's safe to say that most of the time the answer is no, and the main reason is found in Fr. Sebastien's words above. "Grace...is a reality that conditions our humanity to attain the purposes God has for us." There is a great lesson here if we have eyes to see it.
Do I still struggle with anxiety? Yes. That's why I refer to it as a cross, butthere's a difference between battling anxiety and letting it run your life. That's what was happening in the past. I've done the work, I'm continuing to do it today, and it has blessed every aspect of my life...
On my worst days I can fall victim to being anxious about my anxiety where I'm convinced that this cross is a barrier to God's will being realized in my life.
If instead we surrender that struggle to God, offering up our efforts in battle for the conversion of sinners and resigning the outcome to God, I think we'll find peace there.
