A young woman was having a difficult time dealing with a particular situation in her life. As a result of what had happened to her, she felt as if she had lost a part of herself—that part of her life was literally stolen from her and that she would never get it back. Her feelings of anger, hurt and sorrow were, on some days, very overwhelming. She also felt that she was slowly but surely losing her faith. She also felt that God was not happy with her for some of the poor decisions she had made in the midst of all that was going on.
One day she went to see a priest whom she trusted a great deal. They had been friends since childhood, both growing up on the same street, and she had followed his vocational journey through seminary to ordination and now as a parochial vicar in a large parish in the city.
She told Father Bill that she was having a particularly difficult day and needed his help. Bill knew what it was that happened in this young person’s life, and this was not the first time that the two had spoken about the situation. Toward the end of their conversation Father Bill said to her, “Don’t think that you are losing your faith because of what has happened. And don’t think that God is displeased with you, or has abandoned you because of what has happened. Actually, I just read something in a great spiritual book that I feel Jesus wants me to share with you now. Here’s what Father Bill read to his longtime friend:
So, whatever happens in life, we must remember that God is in charge and if he permits something to happen, he can use it for good. Indeed, no matter what events unfold in the external circumstances of our lives, we should always have confidence that God can bring some important good out of it on the inside of our soul.
To sum up, think of the crosses that come up in life as places to encounter Jesus. They’re almost like “mini-tabernacles”. We are used to bending our knees before the Real Presence of Jesus in the Sacred Hosts kept in the tabernacles of our churches. But, in an analogous way, do we bend the knees of our hearts before the trials that come our way? Do we seek to encounter God in those moments? For Jesus wants to meet us in those difficult situations that he has, in his providence, allowed us to experience.
He wants to meet us in the crosses in life, not just in the chapel.
“Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life…(and then) For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him.”
So, don’t give in to despair when bad things happen. Or don’t think that you’ve “blown your chances with God” because of poor decisions that you’ve made in your life. More often than not God is trying to reach out to you in the midst of all the chaos. If you persevere with Jesus, He can actually bring something good out of what has been so challenging.
When troubles come, the temptation is to just look at our problems and be crushed by them, either getting discouraged or finding ourselves anxiously scrambling to solve them. But God wants to teach us something in every moment, even in our troubles. So the next time you experience a challenge in life, take a moment to look inside your soul. Ask God what he is wanting to point out to you through this trial and how he might be inviting you to grow. Don’t miss the moment of grace.
