christianity – Spiritual Sun Pennies

100) Lenten Loneliness

It’s been a different Lent this year (2018), with many ups and downs, and woeful failures in my attempts to stick to my Lenten resolutions. In the first few weeks blessings abounded as I was swept from glory to glory with lots of good time in reflection, and a mini-retreat at home in Wisconsin. There I was able to make many connections with friends, visit the Shrine of Our Lady of Good Help (now Our Lady of Champion). and make a trip up to the cabin with a friend where we were blessed with blue blue skies and fresh snow fall. Consolations were everywhere, and I was embracing them with all my heart 🙂

The return trip to MN led me to a place of loneliness, bombarded with memories of loss that were stealing the joy I had experienced. The remedy I had learned from Linda Schubert was a five step process which I sought to implement as an antidote to discouragement.

First step was to acknowledge the pain of loneliness that I was experiencing – to embrace it and lean into it gently. Step two was to really allow myself to feel the pain. It was deep, and I found my self recognizing it as a sacrifice I could offer to the Lord, and I leaned hard into it, not just gently, but pressing my very inner self into this emptiness and desolation, to console the heart of Jesus. I remembered the prayers of St. Bridget, the fifth prayer where she witnessed the sadness of the Lord’s own heart from the cross as He looked at humanity and saw all those who turned away and rejected His gifts of love and mercy.

A prayer rose in my heart, that somehow my little pain might be as a drop of balm to Christ’s own immeasurable thirst for souls. One tiny drop was all I could offer, but I gave it to the Lord from the bottom of my heart, in profound gratitude for the life I had been given. The desire to live the remaining days of Lent at a very deep level, not passing by the gift I was being offered, but rather to unite my little sacrifice to the fathomless sacrifice of the Cross, in reparation for my sins, for those of the ones I hold in my heart, for my church, for my village, for my country…. This was step three in the process, uniting my suffering with that of Jesus on the Cross. I recognized that this gift I could offer, though small, is precious to my Lord, and is a gift that only I can give…

Step four is to extend blessing to any who may have been a part of the pain or suffering I was experiencing. Offering a prayer of thanksgiving for God’s grace in leading me through this process and seeking His blessing to those I may have felt hurt by, always with the desire for sincere forgiveness, was another step toward bringing me back to a place of peace and joy.

I determined to bring this all to Jesus in Adoration, in prayer, and to carry it in my heart throughout the up-coming Holy Week. I would bring it to Stations, and beg the grace to enter in to the deeper intimate relationship to which the Lord was calling me. I wanted to gladly receive the invitation, the gift ~ not to leave it on the shelf to admire, but to fully unwrap it and allow it to consume me…

The last step was one of gratitude, to leave the process at the foot of the cross and enter in to the new spiritual freedom the Lord desired for me. Acknowledge the hurt, feel the pain, lean in to it gently, unite it to Christ’s sacrifice, extend blessing and forgiveness, and leave it all at the foot of the cross with gratitude to Jesus for His healing grace. This process has been a blessing for me over and over again as an antidote to discouragement and desolation. How grateful I am for the many ways the Lord draws us back to Himself, to restore our peace and fill us once again with His Light!

Lord God, thank You for Your gift of Redemption! When we come to You in our brokenness with repentant hearts, You never fail to offer us the free healing gifts of Love and Mercy. May I never forget to turn to You, that You may restore Your peace within me so that I may extend that peace to others. Peace in our hearts, one by one, to bring Your peace to the world

99) Grasshoppers!

Grasshoppers! That’s the word that jumped out at me while praying with Isaiah 40:22 – “He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth; its dwellers are like grasshoppers.” Grasshoppers? The extended passage had so many other thoughts in it, why did I keep coming back to “grasshoppers?” It made me laugh, of course, and continued to bring a smile as the word kept returning to my memory for several weeks. Finally I felt called to investigate a little, so started by googling the word to see what would come up Biblically.

This is the first note that I found: Pope Saint Gregory the Great is said to have seen the grasshopper as a sign from God that he was to return to Rome after beginning a journey to England to be a missionary there. As they paused on their journey, three days from Rome, a grasshopper, also called a locust, jumped on to the book he was reading. “Rightly is it called locust,” he said, “because it seems to say to us, loco sta (locusta),—stay in your place!” He interpreted this as meaning he should stay in Rome, and abort his mission to England. As he was arriving at this decision, messengers arrived from Rome calling him to return there. Holy Spirit intervention, discerned by St Gregory for a decision that had a positive impact on the whole Church! ( For more of this story, see https://www.catholic365.com/article/35503/gregory-and-the-grasshopper.html).

As I prayed with this, two thoughts entered the conversation. One was God’s call for me to stay where I am – to limit my outside activities and stay home to address the projects that have been awaiting me here for a long time. Time to get my own house in order before embarking on new adventures!

The second message seemed to be a confirmation of the call to acknowledge my own littleness, and be content and happy to be the child of God that I am. No great expeditions or extravaganzas, but to continue to savor the graces of being “Nobody,” just living a simple life and doing the next right thing each day. I’ve always loved the poem by Emily Dickenson:
:
I’m Nobody! Who are you?
Are you – Nobody – too?
Then there’s a pair of us!
Don’t tell! They’d advertise – you know!

How dreary – to be – Somebody!
How public – like a Frog
To tell one’s name – the livelong June
To an admiring Bog!

Grasshoppers! It also brings a lightness of heart, along with a smile at God’s playfulness in conveying a message to my spirit. Lectio Divina becomes a delightful part of each day as the Lord speaks through His Word, always with the prospect of drawing me closer to Him as He reminds me that He sees me, He knows me, He loves me and He’s guiding me to holiness. Thank you Lord, for grasshoppers!

97) Stand Up For Jesus!

Secrets! Remember how fun it is to whisper a secret, knowing it’s a special surprise waiting to delight a friend? Perhaps for a birthday party, or a welcome home treat, the joy we experience at bringing unexpected delight to those we love is multiplied when shared with others. In Ignatian vocabulary, this can be called a non-spiritual consolation, which always has the potential to bring us to spiritual consolation, as a drawing nearer to God. This kind of secret can be healthy and holy! There’s another kind of secret that St Ignatius warns us to avoid however, and that’s when the enemy whispers to keep silent when our own spirit is troubled.

An example of this can be when we are tempted or have fallen in to entertaining thoughts or behavior that is not in line with our Christian values. In Rule 13 of the Rules for Discernment of Spirits, we are warned about keeping secret the whisper of the enemy that it’s ok to be unfaithful to our marriage vows. The quickest and most effective way to foil the enemy here is to do the opposite – to share this temptation with a trusted spiritual friend or spiritual companion who can help us to see the truth, and turn away from the deceptive tactic of the enemy. Even in just speaking this “secret” out loud, we can experience clarity in our spiritual vision, and gain the strength to confess our sin or temptation and return to the holy highway.

As I was praying about this, a memory came to mind that reminded me of this rule in a slightly different context. Growing up with a strong Christian faith, I was invited at an early age to publicly confess my faith in Jesus Christ as my Savior and Lord. No secret here! Be strong and bold to declare my Savior! Many years later, after I had been blessed to enter the Catholic faith, we were at a large gathering of Catholics for a mini retreat. The Pastor of the Church proclaimed the Gospel, and then invited us all to stand up if we were ready to give our lives to Jesus. That had never been presented like that to this group, and there was silence, and not a soul budged from their pew. Then slowly, a few of us stood up! It took several minutes, and a few more exhortations from the pastor, for people to stand.

What was keeping us all silent? This was a group of committed Christians, many of whom shared a deep and holy faith. Was it the unexpected request that caused the delay – or was it the enemy whispering, “don’t be so public!” “This isn’t the way we show our faith!”
To me it was the invitation to be more bold, and to stand up for Jesus! Not to hesitate, but to be ready and able to declare Jesus as Lord! No longer to hide what I believe, nor keep it secret, but to be happy and proud of my Catholic faith, in gratitude for all it has given me in this life, and in the promise of eternal life.

To me it was the invitation to be more bold, and to stand up for Jesus! Not to hesitate, but to be ready and able to declare Jesus as Lord! No longer to hide what I believe, nor keep it secret, but to be happy and proud of my Catholic faith, in gratitude for all it has given me in this life, and in the promise of eternal life.
Secrets. So many different kinds of secrets, some healthy and holy, and others tricks of the enemy. We need the gift of the Spirit to discern well, to bring to light what is meant to be revealed.

Lord God, help us to grow in the gift of discernment, to be able to sort out from the variety of possible responses those which are most pleasing to You. Especially Lord, give us the courage and boldness to never keep our trust in You secret, but be willing to stand up for You in gratitude for Your gift of Life…

96) Stocking our Spiritual Pantry

How often when we experience something beautiful, we exclaim, “I’ll never forget this moment! It will stay with me forever!” only to find that as time passes the images aren’t quite as vivid, and the details become a bit fuzzy. We still recall the moment, but can’t quite re-capture the same delight as when it first occurred. The Lord understands our human weakness in re-call, and He offers us the grace of re-living the moment as for the first time, bringing it into the present for us. This is the same gift He gives us in the Mass – we’re not just remembering what Jesus has done for us, but rather it is re-presented with all the power of the original sacrifice when we enter into this Reality. We need to ask the help of the Holy Spirit to receive this grace, and He is only too ready to extend it to us!

This gift is especially helpful when we slip into desolation, and can be a sure remedy to restore us to a season of consolation. In the 10th Rule of St Ignatius we read, “When one enjoys consolation, let him consider how he will conduct himself during the time of ensuing desolation, and store up a supply of strength as defense against that day.” Consolation comes with times of drawing nearer to God, and Desolation is the opposite – becoming distant from God. We want to store up a supply of strength against the day of desolation – one way which can be to stock our Spiritual Pantry!

I first heard this term in the writing of Liz Kelly, and it brings to mind a visual image of a pantry, with shelves ready to receive and keep the consolations I have received in the past. The shelves are labeled: music that has lifted my heart, stories from books that have blessed me, family gatherings that were times of harmony and love… whatever terms are meaningful to identify the experience. The experiences stored in our Pantry are resources God has given us to leave Desolation and return to Consolation.

How do we begin ? Step one is the awareness that we are in desolation. St Ignatius begins all discernment with this step, becoming aware that we have lost our inner peace.

Step two is always to turn to the Holy Spirit, Who helps us to remember what we need. Having recognized the enemy at work, now we need to take action, step three! John 14:26, “the Holy Spirit, Whom the Father will send in My Name, will teach you all things, and will remind you of everything I have said to you.” Consolations are a gift from God, and He wants us to remember them, as being spoken to our hearts in experiences or words by Jesus.

The action here is to go to our Spiritual Pantry, and ask the Holy Spirit to guide us to the memory on the shelf that relates to our current situation. We retrieve the memory in prayer, and savor the grace received then and allow it to re-ignite our faith, hope and love for the present circumstance.

An experience related by a friend is an illustration of step two, turning to the Holy Spirit. She was in college, and had been negligent in attending a statistics class. Time came for the final exam, and receiving the questions, she realized she didn’t know how to proceed to answer them. In high school she had excelled in math, so she had within her the ability to do the work, but was at a loss with these particular questions. Having attended Catholic grade school, she remembered the teaching to always pray to the Holy Spirit before test taking, that He might bring to mind what she had learned and apply it to the test. Bowing her head, she invoked the Holy Spirit to do just that, and then proceeded to answer the questions, and turned in the exam paper.

Two days later her professor called her into his office. He stated that prior to taking the exam she was failing the course for lack of attendance and not turning in homework, but she had answered all the questions perfectly. Also she was the only one in the class who had written a perfect exam, and he knew she couldn’t have copied from anyone. However, she had shown only minimally how she had arrived at the answers; if she could explain how she did it, he would give her a B, otherwise she would get a C and pass the class. She didn’t disclose having prayed to the Holy Spirit, and she didn’t remember how she had arrived at the answers. But she passed happily with the C!

What an encouragement to ask the Holy Spirit to remind us what we need to proceed in any area of our lives! Particularly when in desolation, which is always from the enemy, to return us to the time of consolation where we can be the joyful witness to our faith that will be a blessing to ourselves and others!

This story is one of the items stored in my Spiritual Pantry. When I get stuck on a question, or need a boost to restore my joy, pulling this off the shelf and re-visiting it always re-ignites my faith and helps me to move forward in consolation.

Lord God, thank you for all the holy experiences you have blessed me with, times of consolation to be used as weapons against the snares of the enemy. May I not hesitate to open the Pantry and again receive the grace of Your love and care for me, gathered through the years and continuing to bring blessing, for me and for all those with whom they are to be shared…

93) Communion of Saints

November 2 is celebrated in the Catholic Church as the Feast of All Soul’s Day. This day is specially designated as a day to pray for the souls of all the faithful departed, especially those who are believed to be in purgatory, awaiting their journey to heaven. Purgatory is the place of “purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven.” (CCC 1031). This purification is needed, for “nothing unclean will enter the presence of God in heaven.” (Rev 21:27)

It was Sunday, Nov 2, the Feast of All Souls Day, and my friend shared how she felt a particular spiritual energy at the early Sunday morning Mass she attended. She had recently lost a loved one, and that loss magnified the meaning of the Feast for her. It was an experience of a friend of hers at the second Sunday morning Mass that has blessed me, and all those with whom I’ve shared it.

Her friend shared how at a certain point in the Mass, the priest became visibly shaken, and turned away from the altar for a few moments to regain his composure. He finished the celebration, and at the conclusion shared what had happened that caused him to react like that. As he was looking out at the congregation, he began to see, seated in the pews, all the people at whose funerals he had officiated in this church. And as he continued to see them, members of his own family who had passed away were also present there. Overcome with emotion, he had to stop and turn away, so moved by this vision granted him by the Lord.

Her friend had recently lost her husband, and she also shared that as she stood before the priest to received the Eucharist, he paused. Something had caused him to wait a short time before offering her the Host. She stated that she truly felt the presence of her departed husband there with her in that precious moment.

What a gift they had all been given, and how blessed they were that their priest shared with them what he saw! As I heard this story, what came to my own imagination was a church filled with people I know who have passed away, all present there at the Mass, and asking my prayers to speed them on their journey. Holy anticipation filled the atmosphere, and joy at the thought of all those good people now praying for me, and for all those I hold in my heart. The communion of saints became more real, along with the recognition of the magnitude of this gift, and thanksgiving to the Good God Who has so arranged it!

Each time I hear a “glory story,” it strengthens my faith and encourages me to be more attentive to the invisible world that surrounds us. It‘s a catalyst for expectant faith, awaiting the next surprise the Lord has in store. “Open the eyes of my heart Lord, I want to see You” is the refrain from a praise and worship song. It’s the refrain of my heart too!

Lord God, help me to pay attention and be aware of Your Presence in the everyday circumstances of life. Give me the courage and the means to share these gifts, that others too may be blessed. I don’t want to miss You passing by…

91) Do It Now

Procrastination has been a challenge for me all my life. I’m reminded lately of my mom’s acronym, DIN! Do It Now! How I need to respond to that command, and recall how often in Scripture things were done “immediately,” “with haste!” Perhaps my problem has been with discerning just what it is that needs doing now! There are so many options, and it’s time to start whittling them down to the essentials, in the hope that actually doing it now can be accomplished! Where to start?

Making a list of non-negotiables can be a starting point. For me at this time in my life, this would include daily Mass whenever possible, and daily rosary, always possible. Checking the calendar to note appointments or meetings that are necessary should come next. Daily exercise of some sort has become more important, as I find myself spending way too much time sitting, often at the computer. So I’ll put a daily walk, and also my exercise video high on the list. I try to keep the kitchen tidy as my main contribution to housekeeping chores, and basic bedroom tidiness too. And that’s really about all of the essentials!

That leaves lots of room for the non-daily activities, like laundry, other cleaning, paying bills and other paperwork…. This is when I get bogged down, seeing the giant list of things that don’t demand immediate attention, aren’t on the daily essential list, but need to get done “sometime.” Ah, sometime… that smells like procrastination to me! Methinks I need a better plan ~

This brings me to mom’s second acronym – HIC = Help Is Coming! And the help she knew was always available came from the Lord! He would send people help, inspirational help, a Word from the Scriptures – but always something to get going and do the next right thing. Over and over the Scriptures remind us to ASK! So I’m asking now, Lord – help me to discern how to spend each moment of each precious day that You give me in a way that glorifies You and helps to fulfill the plan and purpose You have made me for today. I don’t want to just spin my wheels and waste the gift of time You’ve given me. I know that this isn’t about being more “productive,” but rather living in Your will for me each day, which naturally includes accomplishing whatever tasks You have set before me. I recognize these will include times of rest, times of silence with You, time in Your Word. I think of Bp David Rcken’s advice: “Each day, no more, no less, no sooner, no later than what the Lord asks of you.” Harmonize my life, Lord, that the music it produces may be pleasing to Your ear and create a symphony that will bring blessings to others. DIN and HIC – thank you mom!

Lord God, help me to live well the days remaining to me! I ask to hear Your Voice throughout each day, leading me on the path that accomplishes what’s necessary, and brings glory to You! Thank you for my mom’s wisdom, that whispers in my ear…

90) Surrender to Grace

This last weekend was spent in helping my sister-in-law pack up and leave the cabin she dearly loves, to return to her residence in a retirement community. She had spent several weeks solo at the cabin for many years, but last year due to health challenges it hadn’t happened. Missing that time at the cabin had been really hard for her, and a time of depression had set in.

It was a long drive, and she thought she could do it alone this summer. When I offered to help her get there, she readily agreed to the offer, so my son and I picked her up in July and made the trip North, planning to do the return trip in September.

It was a time of great blessings, and also of a surrender to the grace of God as she realized the reality of physical limitations due to health and age – she’ll be 90 in October! Blessings included many evening meals shared with extended family visiting at nearby cabins, being back in the woods able to see the lake and savor the deep quiet. Short trips to nearby towns with easy and beautiful country driving were a joy!

It wasn’t all easy though – some of the things she most wanted to do were not do-able; the dock was too wobbly and her legs too unsteady to sit on the bench at the end of the dock. The lovely and peaceful bench on a little lake in the woods surrounded by a bog was unattainable, as the board walk was unstable. The shot received to reduce the pain in her legs began to wear off as the weeks went by, and the constant pain began to return.

All of this reminded me of Paula D’Arcy’s story told in her book SACRED THRESHOLDS, where she relates her time as a therapist with Morrie Schwarz. (TUESDAYS WITH MORRIE). Morrie had ALS, and was slowly losing his ability to do all the things he had loved in this life. Paula walked with him through this journey, as he shared the stories and they re-lived them together, savoring and celebrating the joys, and then letting them go, one by one. This was what my sister-in-law was able to do. She was in the place she loved, remembering the special joys she had experienced there, and then by God’s grace being able to let them go. The reality of not being able to do what she thought she could was acknowledged and accepted, and she said she was blessed with peace as she realized this would be the last time she would spend being at the cabin solo like this. And it was ok, for the frustrations had been replaced by peace.

What a gift the Lord had given to her! As Paula writes in her book about Morrie, she had found the path of surrender to the grace of God. I think of my mom, the last time she came to the cabin. We walked all around the property, visiting the special spots which had been like home for her for over 60 summers. She said goodbye to each one, with gratitude in her heart for all the blessed memories, and ready to let them go and be passed on to the next generations. The words she wrote to the family about the property are a precious legacy –

“Each of us is responsible for our brief moment here on earth. All of us have a love for this small piece of God’s handiwork. May the future find that it has been nurtured and cared for during our lifetimes. All that we have is God’s alone. We are blessed to have each other with whom we can share it.” Please God that we may take these words to heart and live them!

Thank you Lord, for the path of surrender to Your grace! What a gift that has been modeled for our family! My I learn it well as I too am being called to savor the memories and experiences, and then to return them with deep gratitude to You, the source of all that has blessed me in this life…

89) Prison to Praise

What do I do when I fall into a funk? When I’m stuck in self-pity and feeling discouraged? When I want to run away, to hide in my room? Only remedy: sing praise to my God!

My friend Loretta introduced me to the book PRISON TO PRAISE by Merlin Carothers many years ago, and it’s offered an answer to my prayer for help again and again. “God inhabits the praises of His people,” (Ps 22:3), and where the Good God is, the enemy flees!

Here I am once more, feeling lost and confused, and down in the dumps. Thank You Lord, for reminding me of the antidote! I’ll sing Your Praises, and thank You for this situation just as it is, trusting that You know all about it! Nothing is ever a surprise for You, and You have a plan to follow in every circumstance, to bring good from every adversity. (Rom 8:28) I need to listen to You first, and not to trust in the world’s advice!

I’m reminded of Mom’s response when things got too overwhelming in caring for Dad with his Alzheimer’s. She would go into the bathroom, shut the door, and sing the Doxolgy loud and clear! “Praise God from Whom all Blessings flow, praise Him all creatures here below! Praise Him above Ye Heavenly Host, praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost!” This would renew her inner strength, and give her the grace to carry on with whatever needed to be done, knowing she was not alone, but rather accompanied by the Good God Who had been faithful to her all her life, even as she had been a faithful Christian all her life!

How grateful I am for the foundation of Faith in which I was formed as a child! There was never any doubt that God was Real, He loved me, and He would be with me in whatever circumstance I found myself. He’s with me now, in every question, every challenge. I don’t need to spend time speculating on the “what ifs,” but rather make an act of faith, of hope, and do the next best thing. For me today, it’s been to sit down and write this, to remind myself of Truth, and allow the Lord to re-set my attitude. I’ll move from “poor me” to Praise God!

Thank You Lord, for reminding me of Truth when I come to You for help. Reminding me to praise You in all circumstances, for Your Word tells me that You inhabit our praises, and where You are, evil cannot endure! May I always come to You quickly, in haste like Mary, and not linger in desolation. Jesus, I trust in You!

88) Real Presence in the Eucharist

The Eucharist began to really come alive for me when our son Stevie was in the second grade. His class at Sacred Heart was preparing to receive the Sacrament of First Communion, and would come to the celebration of Mass together to learn more about it. Because of some renovating going on in the main church, daily Mass was being held in the basement of the Center, and there usually weren’t too many people besides the second graders in attendance. As it was open to adults though, I attended to be with Stevie and his class.

On one occasion, Fr. Len hadn’t expected any adults to be present, but an older couple and myself came to the celebration. He hadn’t brought any Hosts from the tabernacle in church, as the second graders weren’t ready to receive yet. So at the conclusion of the liturgy, he said he would go over to the church and bring some Hosts for us adults. I didn’t know the older couple, and felt somewhat out of place; I had errands to run and things to do, so I thought I’d just leave and be on my way. It was snowing outside, so I was brushing the snow off my car when it occurred to me: if the Church teaches that Jesus Christ is truly present in the consecrated Host, what on earth am I doing walking away without receiving Him? Fr. Len had returned to the Center, so I went back in, but he thought I had left, and so had consumed the Host he had brought for me.

This really got me to thinking about what I believed.

I had recently read an article about faith, which had encouraged a doubter to just “act as if” what he professed was true, whether he felt like it or not. “Act as if.” If my faith tells me that Jesus is truly present in the Eucharist, how should that affect my life? Would I ever leave Mass without receiving Him? Would I be casual about the Blessed Sacrament?

I began to attend daily Mass as often as I could, and often reflected on how my life should look if I truly believed that the Lord of the Universe, the Author of Life, my Lord and my God was present and available to me each day. And as I prayed and read, the recognition grew that this awesome God wanted to come to me; He thirsted for souls to love and receive Him. More than just being “available,” He deeply desired union with us, His children.

The mystery of the Eucharist is so deep and multi-layered, I can only be amazed and incredibly grateful for the grace to believe that Jesus is truly present to us, Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity, in the Blessed Sacrament. So often God has revealed a truth to me through our children, and often through Steve. The best thing I can do is pray, and the greatest prayer I can offer is the Mass…

Lord God, thank You for the incredible Gift of Yourself, offered to us at each Holy Mass. May we never take You for granted or neglect the opportunity to attend the sacred liturgy, keeping participation in the Mass at the center of our lives ~

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ********************************

While kayaking on the lake one summer day, I leaned on the side of my kayak and tipped over in the water. I had both my camera and my cell phone with me – the cell phone died, but the camera survived, altho it sometimes produced spots on the photos as if to remind me of my water adventure. The camera still worked pretty well most of the time, so I was using it to take some photos of the monstrance in order to promote Adoration in our parish of Sacred Heart. As I looked at the images, they were appearing with a big dot right above the monstrance, which looked just like a huge Host. I had seen dots appear before, but never like this one, and in such a perfect location. It seemed to me as if the Lord were magnifying His Presence in the Host, and the image has been a beautiful blessing for me. It’s not a photoshop trick – it’s a gift from God

We only had the tabernacle with Mary’s statue in this position for a short time before the tabernacle was moved to a position under the mosaic behind the altar – the “spot” wouldn’t have showed up there like it does on the brick wall. Perfect timing, perfect positioning… Lord God, thank You for this beautiful surprise and declaration of Your Presence in the Blessed Sacrament! May our hearts grow to welcome you and Your Presence be magnified in our lives ~

87) The Presence of God

While visiting with friends, I joined them for Sunday Mass. I don’t like to spend time critiquing a service, but rather to be grateful for the Mass, to give thanks and intercede for loved ones, to receive Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament! I love to sing the hymns, and it was good to be there with those I love.

This day, however, I found myself grading everything – the pastor, the choir, the congregation – not what I want to be doing. The pastor was not a native and it was a real struggle to understand him, along with a sound system that wasn’t working correctly and was fluctuating between loud bursts and silence. The music leaders were difficult to hear, and tricky to follow. I was finding it challenging to enter in and be fully present to the liturgy, being distracted by what I was perceiving as a less than “quality” service. I’m ashamed to even admit it, as I recognize how uncharitable my attitude had become.

The moment came, however, when that all changed! It was at the time of consecration – the priest was saying the sacred words that changed the bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ – and the atmosphere changed! God showed up! I could sense it in a very real and tangible way – His peace was there, His Presence permeated the room, and the liturgy became alive! I don’t know if others experienced this as I did, but it changed the entire service into a time of worship and gratitude, shifting my critical attitude back to one of thanksgiving and appreciation to be there! Praise God!

As I thought about this, it reminded me of other times when I had experienced God breaking through, and indeed changing the atmosphere. We used to have a small jail ministry that met monthly with the county prisoners, to offer them a time to gather and hear God’s Word. I clearly remember that almost without exception, about half way through our time together, God would show up! I would know this, and would let others know: God is here! He’s with us, and He wants us to know that He’s here! This seemed to usher in a time of grace, when the inmates became more open, and there were beautiful sharings of sacred moments in their lives.

It reminded me too of David Wilkerson’s book, THE CROSS AND THE SWITCHBLADE, about his calling to minister to the street gangs of New York. He would rent a space for a meeting, and would invite the gang members to attend. They were a very unruly bunch, to say the least, and his initial efforts to preach were met with loud interruptions and cat calls, and total disrespect. But then, something would happen! As he realized that his human efforts were ineffective, and of himself he could not control this crowd or succeed in sharing God’s Word, God Himself would show up! Not in the flesh of course, not that others could see Him, but He would make His Presence known. A hush would come over the room, the gang members would often find themselves in tears, and God would begin the work of changing hearts.

This is what I felt at that church service with my friends. It was as though a hush came over the congregation – you could hear a pin drop, and sense that something beautiful was happening in people’s hearts. We all left having been blessed and renewed, in God’s tender quiet way. I know in my mind that He is there with us always, but what a grace to truly know this in a deeper way that changes everything!

Lord God, thank You for Your Presence, with us always! Thank You that in unexpected and delightful ways You sometimes make that Presence known in a sensible fashion. Would that I may be open to recognize You at that time, to proclaim Your Presence and invite others in to receive Your Love and Mercy…

 Lord God, thank You for Your Presence, with us always! Thank You that in unexpected and delightful ways You sometimes make that Presence known in a sensible fashion.  Would that I may be open to recognize You at that time, to proclaim Your Presence and invite others in to receive Your Love and Mercy…