Seek That Greatness

13 May

The greatest romance one can find is to fall in love with God.  The greatest journey one could embark on is to seek Him.  The greatest achievement one can obtain is to find Him.”  ~ St. Augustine

The great mystics have always impressed me.  To think that someone loved God so much that everything they thought, said, and did focused upon God is just awe-inspiring.  I realize, as I write that last sentence, that there is much more work that I need to do.  After all, I am a Catholic Christian.  I have been raised in the faith.  I “took the plunge” and went further in the faith by becoming ordained to the priesthood.  “What do you mean that people who ‘loved God so much that everything they thought, said, and did focused upon God’ inspired you,” you might ask?  “Shouldn’t you love God so much that everything you think, say, and do should focus upon Him?”

Well, yes.  It should.  I should.  But that doesn’t always happen.

All of us are called to step away from the world and draw closer to God.  All of us, to a lesser or greater degree, struggle with the call and distraction of the world.  All of us find ourselves, at one time or another, distant from God.  All but the mystics.  There is something about their love for God that keeps them extremely close to Him.  There is something about their love for God that helps them to see God in every person they encounter.  There is something about their love for God that shines through in their lives.

I would like to be like that some day.  I know that I am not there yet.  I know that there are too many times that I take my eyes off of the Lord because of the cares and concerns of life.  I allow myself to worry too much.  I tell myself that I have to get things done on my own and forget to ask God to be a part of everything that I do.

Seeing people in love with one another is always very special.  When the person they love walks into a room, their faces change.  They “glow”, for lack of a better word.  Everyone knows that they are in love with that person.  It is obvious.  Just so it is with mystics.  When they speak about God, their faces glow.  When they serve the needs of others, there is a light in their eyes that lets you know they see Jesus in the other.  There is something other-worldly about them that attracts others.

We fall in and out of love in this world too easily.  There are times in our lives that we become jaded by the idea of love.  Maybe that is why we are afraid to fall in love with God.  As we might have become disappointed by others when we have fallen in love with them, maybe we are afraid that God will disappoint us or leave us.  That could never happen, though.  God’s love for us is infinite and totally unconditional.  Seek His love today.  Do not be afraid to respond to His love.  Live His love as completely as you can today.  That way, we can become more like Him.

FAITH ACTION:  Spend your day looking for the Lord in all the experiences you have and all the people you encounter.