Some readers may recall this posting about acting as if God is real:
Most of us put God on the back burner when it comes to other priorities: we are often willing to shorten prayers or skip them completely in ways that we don't with, let's say, food. Yet, we often have the conflicting notion that God is the most important priority in all our lives.
But, because we do not see Him, many do not believe in Him and even those who do often forget Him, even when praying.
The case here is of a priest serving the Liturgy when his son tells him the family home is on fire. He tells his son he will look into it after the service, and has the boy find his mother. How many of us would run out the door with such news? Fr. Adam, at a gut level, knows what is most important and demonstrated it. He lost all his possessions, yet did not abandon God. He finished the service.
So, what was his reward? Well, first, he himself has seen the strength of his own faith tested. Second, he certainly has earned the respect of his brethren. Third, he has also seen an outpouring of love from others:
http://newporttwpems.com/
On this, the day after Pascha (Easter), I thought it was appropriate to have an update.
In an era when we all seem to desire and expect to be able to avoid struggle and hardship, we too often forget that our true strength as humans is not in the avoidance but in the endurance. This is what sobriety is all about: enduring our temptations for the sake of something greater.
Like Fr. Adam, we should all be 'taken captive' by God. Because, if we were so inclined, we would not be wracked by the fears that drive us into places we do not wish to go. By putting Him first, we can have the peace of mind that circumstances cannot take away. We can also enjoy the 'harvest' that comes after such trials. In Fr. Adam's case, his own patience has led to an experience of others' love that few of us here have experienced or can even imagine.
On this, the day after Pascha (Easter), I thought it was appropriate to have an update.
In an era when we all seem to desire and expect to be able to avoid struggle and hardship, we too often forget that our true strength as humans is not in the avoidance but in the endurance. This is what sobriety is all about: enduring our temptations for the sake of something greater.
Like Fr. Adam, we should all be 'taken captive' by God. Because, if we were so inclined, we would not be wracked by the fears that drive us into places we do not wish to go. By putting Him first, we can have the peace of mind that circumstances cannot take away. We can also enjoy the 'harvest' that comes after such trials. In Fr. Adam's case, his own patience has led to an experience of others' love that few of us here have experienced or can even imagine.
We often complain that God is unjust to us or too harsh and we have our own way in order to avoid the pain of trials. Not only is this a bad condition of the heart, but even of the mind. An atheist "argument" is the classical "why does God allow suffering?". We, Christians, should at least say, "because He will give us the strength to overcome them".
ReplyDeleteIf God can give us the strength to go through anything, then why not win twice, instead of losing even what we think we have in this world? We would both grow in strength and win our battles, too! Isn't this a far greater gift from God than removing all obstacles?