O Lord, you search me and you know me, you know my resting and my rising, you discern my purpose from afar...For it was you who created my being, knit me together in my mother's womb...Already you knew my soul, my body held no secret from you...O search me, God and know my heart. O test me and know my thoughts. See that I follow not the wrong path and lead me in the path of life eternal. Psalm 139
You have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you, oh Lord. St. Augustine
Today marks the memorial of St. Augustine, perhaps one of the most dramatic conversion stories from the early years of our faith. He's been known for such quips as "Lord grant me chastity...only not yet." Now, whether or not he actually said those words, I think many of us can identify with the sentiment. Deep down, we know we were created to be holy and blameless. Yet we have this strange fear that if we live our lives according to God's design, we'll be boring sticks in the mud.
We have only to look at our own history to know that the path God chooses for us is rarely boring. In fact, we are most fully alive when we are living in the way that God intends for us to live. Jesus came to share that Good News with us "I have come so that you may have life and have it abundantly." Those are not words of wallflowers!
Today also marks the day that three young women in our area are entering the religious life. One of them shared a bit of her journey of discernment with us, sharing that she enters today filled with peace and joy, but that the journey has had its share of running away from God's plan. She is certainly not alone, and God doesn't have to be calling you to the religious life for us to go running. When God comes calling, what does he find in our hearts? A desire for the truly good life, or a desire to get to that later while we live in the world for a bit and have our "fun"?
You have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you, oh Lord. St. Augustine
Today marks the memorial of St. Augustine, perhaps one of the most dramatic conversion stories from the early years of our faith. He's been known for such quips as "Lord grant me chastity...only not yet." Now, whether or not he actually said those words, I think many of us can identify with the sentiment. Deep down, we know we were created to be holy and blameless. Yet we have this strange fear that if we live our lives according to God's design, we'll be boring sticks in the mud.
We have only to look at our own history to know that the path God chooses for us is rarely boring. In fact, we are most fully alive when we are living in the way that God intends for us to live. Jesus came to share that Good News with us "I have come so that you may have life and have it abundantly." Those are not words of wallflowers!
Today also marks the day that three young women in our area are entering the religious life. One of them shared a bit of her journey of discernment with us, sharing that she enters today filled with peace and joy, but that the journey has had its share of running away from God's plan. She is certainly not alone, and God doesn't have to be calling you to the religious life for us to go running. When God comes calling, what does he find in our hearts? A desire for the truly good life, or a desire to get to that later while we live in the world for a bit and have our "fun"?
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