A Reflection
I was drawn to read Luke's passage about the Transfiguration - Luke 9:28-36 - and a reflection on the reading from a book I have mentioned before - The Better Part, by John Bartunek, LC.
It is not often that we have the opportunity to witness a true miracle - Christ acting in all His power - and especially not with such pizazz as was the Transfiguration. Wouldn't it be wonderful if Christ would reveal Himself to us is such splendor? Wouldn't it make faith so much easier? Yet, look at Peter's reaction to the Transfiguration: he had no idea what to say! He was overwhelmed and really not at peace. No, God has a better idea.
Instead of coming to us in all His splendor, He chooses to come to us quietly. He comes to us most often in times of quiet prayer, in solitude, even over a sink full of dishes. One of my favorite places, though, is in a quiet church in front of Christ in the tabernacle. Though a quite stream is quite nice too. To find time in a church or in nature for quiet prayer like that is quite a privilege for a mother. But spending time in quiet prayer is a necessity, even over that kitchen sink, or in the wee hours of the morning or after the kids go to bed. That is where we get to know Christ, our source of strength and perseverance in motherhood. I encourage you, find what works for you. If you can steal away for 30 min on a Saturday when the church is open before Saturday evening Mass, do it!
Though God will likely not reveal His Son to us in a cloud and with a loud voice, He reveals His Son to us in other ways, usually when we go off, away from the hustle and bustle of our lives, to spend time with Him in prayer. Jesus went off with three of His disciples to pray on a mountain, which is where the Transfiguration took place; it did not take place in the middle of Jerusalem. And the power with which God can act, even when silently, when we are alone with Him, is dumbfounding. The utter peace and joy He is able to fill our entire being with is incredible and is something we are not capable of doing for ourselves, or opening our hearts satisfactorily to when we are running around doing everything we do.
Now, making our lives a prayer, bringing Christ to every aspect of our day, is an incredibly important task, though a very difficult one in my experience. But I will suggest it is made more difficult or perhaps impossible without time taken in quiet prayer, separated, at least mentally, from that very life we desire to bring Christ into. It is also made impossible without the grace of God, a grace we need to ask for in earnest prayer. Even so, the trials we face and busy-ness of life, and our human condition, dictate that sometimes we feel close to Christ and sometimes we don't; sometimes everything seems to be going our way, and sometimes it doesn't. Yet, when we do spend times in silent prayer, God gives us the graces to get through those more difficult times, as well as times of incredible peace and joy that we can look back on, feeling reassured the He is indeed with us and is a powerful force acting in our lives, whether we feel Him there or not. When we have had time with Him in prayer, truly getting to know Him better, we can better bring Him into every corner of our lives, and grow further in faith and in love.
What do you do to bring Christ into your life? How do you find time for prayer?
It is not often that we have the opportunity to witness a true miracle - Christ acting in all His power - and especially not with such pizazz as was the Transfiguration. Wouldn't it be wonderful if Christ would reveal Himself to us is such splendor? Wouldn't it make faith so much easier? Yet, look at Peter's reaction to the Transfiguration: he had no idea what to say! He was overwhelmed and really not at peace. No, God has a better idea.
Instead of coming to us in all His splendor, He chooses to come to us quietly. He comes to us most often in times of quiet prayer, in solitude, even over a sink full of dishes. One of my favorite places, though, is in a quiet church in front of Christ in the tabernacle. Though a quite stream is quite nice too. To find time in a church or in nature for quiet prayer like that is quite a privilege for a mother. But spending time in quiet prayer is a necessity, even over that kitchen sink, or in the wee hours of the morning or after the kids go to bed. That is where we get to know Christ, our source of strength and perseverance in motherhood. I encourage you, find what works for you. If you can steal away for 30 min on a Saturday when the church is open before Saturday evening Mass, do it!
Though God will likely not reveal His Son to us in a cloud and with a loud voice, He reveals His Son to us in other ways, usually when we go off, away from the hustle and bustle of our lives, to spend time with Him in prayer. Jesus went off with three of His disciples to pray on a mountain, which is where the Transfiguration took place; it did not take place in the middle of Jerusalem. And the power with which God can act, even when silently, when we are alone with Him, is dumbfounding. The utter peace and joy He is able to fill our entire being with is incredible and is something we are not capable of doing for ourselves, or opening our hearts satisfactorily to when we are running around doing everything we do.
Now, making our lives a prayer, bringing Christ to every aspect of our day, is an incredibly important task, though a very difficult one in my experience. But I will suggest it is made more difficult or perhaps impossible without time taken in quiet prayer, separated, at least mentally, from that very life we desire to bring Christ into. It is also made impossible without the grace of God, a grace we need to ask for in earnest prayer. Even so, the trials we face and busy-ness of life, and our human condition, dictate that sometimes we feel close to Christ and sometimes we don't; sometimes everything seems to be going our way, and sometimes it doesn't. Yet, when we do spend times in silent prayer, God gives us the graces to get through those more difficult times, as well as times of incredible peace and joy that we can look back on, feeling reassured the He is indeed with us and is a powerful force acting in our lives, whether we feel Him there or not. When we have had time with Him in prayer, truly getting to know Him better, we can better bring Him into every corner of our lives, and grow further in faith and in love.
What do you do to bring Christ into your life? How do you find time for prayer?
Comments
Well said! That's EXACTLY what I struggle with the most. I need to find a way to better achieve that separation so that I can give all my attention to God. Love ya!