Talk To Yourself

8 Jul

“Thinking: the talking of the soul with itself.”  ~ Plato

I’m not sure if you’re aware about how I do these daily reflections.  Generally, I surf the web and, when I find a quote that I like, I add it to a master list to get used at some date.  When I am ready to do the reflection, I check the list and see what quote “talks” to me.  I come up with the title for the reflection, put down the quote, and immediately fill in the Faith Action.  After that, I do the “middle section”, the body of the reflection.  The quote and the action focus me on what I am going to write.

That has worked fine until I came to this reflection.  “Thinking: the talking of the soul with itself” is one of Plato’s famous quotes.  It says a lot to me, especially with implications regarding the faith.  Too often we do not think about our faith.  Including priests.  Yes, you read correctly.  I typed the quote and then typed the Faith Action: “Take some time to think about your faith today.  Ask yourself what questions you have regarding the faith that you still need to resolve.”

Wouldn’t you know it.  I stopped the process of writing this reflection at that point because I began thinking.  My soul was having a huge talk with itself as I thought about the questions I have regarding the faith.  The older I get and the more experiences that I have had, the more questions I seem to have.  It’s not really a matter of trust.  I trust God implicitly.  I just have questions about many things.

We are living in a crazy world that seems to get crazier by the day.  Too many people are set on doing their own thing rather than abiding by the consensus of the group.  Too many people are choosing to break the law.  Too many laws appear to be slack in being upheld.  Too much anger is broiling in people.  Too much hatred is being espoused by groups.

I find myself asking the same question as we have heard many times.  Habakkuk states, “How long, O Lord, will I call for help, And You will not hear?” In Psalm 13, we hear, “How long must I wrestle in my soul, with sorrow in my heart each day?”  Psalm 22 beckons, “I cry out by day, O my God, but You do not answer, and by night, but I have no rest.”

How long?  That is one of the questions that I have been asking, especially recently.  When we grapple with questions, we have an opportunity to get to know ourselves better and to understand our relationship with God.  I have all the questions, God has all the answers and if I do not listen carefully, I will continue to be clueless.

So, with that, I am going to get back to thinking and encourage you to do the same.  When we allow our soul to talk to itself, we can discover so many things.

FAITH ACTION:  Take some time to think about your faith today.  Ask yourself what questions you have regarding the faith that you still need to resolve.