What if THAT is the Spiritual Life?

 

I was listening to Bishop Robert Barron's Classic Sunday Sermon, "You Must Rethink Your Spiritual Life," where he reminds us that we do not have to go looking for God: "He isn't playing hard to get, staying at a distance. He's hovering right over our hearts."

When I was working and people would come to the Church sensing they were missing something and inquiring about becoming Catholic, I would always point out to them that although it seems that they are the ones initiating their search for God, it is actually God who brought them to the church.

This is along the lines of what Bishop Barron was saying, except, in his video he goes on to encourage us to put aside all that is in the way of our letting God into our lives. The image he used was for us to imagine God knocking on our door, but because of all of the stuff (our preoccupations, distractions, desire for wealth, power and honor) that we have settled around the door, we cannot get it open to let God in.

We need to clear out all of the clutter (not just material) so that we can open our hearts to God. It's a good visual to get us thinking, "What is cluttering up my life? What am I most focused on?"

Bishop Barron says, "There's the ascetic life . . . the cleansing of the heart, the clearing of the obstacle, so that you can simply open the door and let him in."

"What if that is the spiritual life?" he asks.

It is incredibly freeing to do such an inventory and I would invite you to take a few minutes every day this week and focus on what is cluttering up your life. What are you striving for apart from God? What do you need to do to free yourself to let God in?

It will be Thanksgiving soon. I expect if you devote yourself to this exercise, by Thanksgiving you will have a good idea of what you need to do. Remember, it may not be easy, and it may take some time, but it will definitely be worth it.

Have a blessed day.

Janet Cassidy

janetcassidy.com

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