Tuesday, August 3, 2010

"Daddy, was I good in church"

I was walking out from Church on Sunday and this tiny little 6 year old turns to look up at her father and asks, "Daddy was I good in church today?".   I smiled as I remembered asking that same question when I was younger knowing very well I spent the whole mass bugging my parents with the question, "is it done yet?".  But I couldn't help but wonder after I heard the little girl ask such a simple question, how this question still applies to me as a now 25 year old.
   At this particular mass, the priest had talked about how we can easily become distracted during prayer, mass, other time with God and how
"If you were raised with Christ, seek what is above,
where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.
Think of what is above, not of what is on earth.
For you have died,
and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
When Christ your life appears,
then you too will appear with him in glory.
Put to death, then, the parts of you that are earthly:
immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire,
and the greed that is idolatry.
Stop lying to one another,
since you have taken off the old self with its practices
and have put on the new self." Col 3: 1-5

How often do we sit through mass and think about what just happened at work, or what we are having for dinner, or which boy looks cute in those jeans! (hehe ok maybe exaggerating a bit there but you get the idea).I think our time at church and our quiet time with God is so important for us to discern what is Heavenly and to let go of the earthly for the time being. It is necessary for our soul to find complete contemplation with God without allowing earthy distractions to rule our minds.  How else will we truly feel His presence at mass, in the Eucharist, or in one another.  But I know what you are thinking, "it can be super hard to remain focused completely for an entire hour."  I completely hear you on that one.  But the more you practice, the less and less you will find your mind wandering.  And the more You ask God for help with this, the easier it will become and the more He will reveal to you about His heart and His love for you! And God knows we will never be perfect, he understands. He just asks that we strive for perfection and as we do we place a big smile on His face. So try it, sit in silence and ask God to help you feel His presence as you push the earthly aside. You might stand in awe of what is revealed to you! and who knows, maybe the next time the Heavenly Father places the question on your heart of "were you good in church today?"...you may be able to answer "Yes!"

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