Daily Reflections

August 7, 2011
WHERE DO I FIND GOD?

The question above is one that we all have to answer at one time or another, even if it is to say that there is no God to find. I disagree with that sentiment because I believe that in reality we can discover God just about anywhere we want to find Him. However, to grow in relationship with God, we have to know what we are looking for in our relationship with Him and look for Him there.
God is not too worried about our starting point — He will come to us wherever we choose to look for Him. Some describe Him as the biggest beggar in the universe and it is true. He will go to any lengths, apart from sin, to find us and draw us into relationship with Him. The lives of the saints demonstrate the great variety of ways that people experience God’s love: through the intellect, nature, meditation, art, beauty and many more. Some of the great mystics, such as St. John of the Cross, find God in the nothingness of themselves. There is no right or wrong way to look for God; the key to finding God is to begin taking the step to search for Him.
Elijah’s experience indicates the almost universal belief that God will be found in the great and spectacular experiences of our lives, but this has to be balanced by the understanding that God can be just as powerfully present in the small and insignificant ones. God can use any experience to reveal Himself to us. We just have to open our minds and hearts to recognize His presence and then respond to it.
But the simple act of finding God will not necessarily make our faith grow. We have to invite Him to be a part of our lives, a process that usually begins small and then grows to include more and more aspects of our lives until we are consumed with the love of God. Fr. Steve Tynan, MGL

Reflection Question:
Where do I find God in my life? What am I doing to look for Him in the busyness of the modern world?

Jesus, I know You are not far from me; help me to open my heart and mind to Your truth and love today.

St. Donatian, pray for us.