Devotional Thought of the Day:

“I’ll be with you as you do this, day after day, right up to the end of the age”  Mt 28:20, MSG

341         You told me that God sometimes fills you with light for a while and sometimes does not. I reminded you, firmly, that the Lord is always infinitely good. That is why those bright days are enough to help you carry on; but the times when you see no light are good for you too, and make you more faithful.

Deep faith is seen is us, when we can’t hear or see God, yet still we instinctively recognize His presence and trust him  ( I don’t remember who he was quoting  CS Lewis maybe, but I remember the Bible Study where Doug Dickey taught me this )

My son yesterday bought a computer game called Minecraft, which is a bit much for a 7 year old, even one as precocious as my son.  He waited for it to download (he gave me the money to buy it with my credit card, ) and took the computer over.  Even as I knew he would, he immediate found himself in a situation he didn’t know how to get out of easily.  After a wile helped him with it, and then, when he got in a similar one, I had to let him struggle and insisted he did, rather than just start it over.

This morning the lesson was repeated, this time with a yo-yo, which he said didn’t work.  (He got it as a prize at school, and despite flashing lights, was somewhat cheap)  Again, showed him it could work, gave a little advice, and then let him struggle with it.  He understood this lesson this morning, and achieved his goal of bouncing the you-yo ten times.  He made the connection to last night – and said – this is why you didn’t let me restart?  Why I had to keep going and work it out?  Yes, son, and what would happen if I fixed everything the first time you got stuck?  With a smile he replied, “I wouldn’t learn to do things myself”

Smart kid!   (takes after his mom)

So now I am at work, and got 6 million things to do, all the while trying to recover from 2 days of grief, grief that I couldn’t get past, as this was the first Father’s Day without my dad.  I know enough to know that grief can’t just be shaken off, or ignored, Scars open, scabs rip off – and sometimes the healing in complete, and sometimes we find it hasn’t really begun.  We have to trust God through it all, and let the time pass…..

The lesson to my son now comes and slams home on me.  The quote in blue above slammed it home to, as I am not as quick to pick up on things as my son is.  There are days everything seems to click, where God’s presence is so clear, that I feel like I could figuratively reach out and hug him.  There are other days, where from my perspective, I can’t see His light as clearly, where life obscures the glory He has invited us to share in forever.   Where life seems to be a “Spiritual Monday”, and while we go through Monday, maybe God took it off like some pastors do?

I mean it – where is God on Monday?  And why can we have a spiritual version of Monday on a Thursday, or a Saturday, or even a Sunday?

St. Josemaria and Dr. Doug were right though, that faith is seen and grows, when we learn to recognize God’s presence, even when we think it isn’t there.  When we rely on His promises rather than our perception,  When we reach out in faith, and receive the blessings of mercy and peace, and love.  When we call out “Lord have mercy on Us” and we find our eyes opened, or maybe just our hearts, assured and calmed by His presence.

You see, what I know is this, as my son struggled with a computer game, as he got frustrated by “spaghetti string” on his yo-yo, his dad was there, watching, knowing there was a way to fix what was going on in both situations.  Yet if he had really gotten stuck beyond his ability, I would be there, rescuing him, fixing things, restoring things.  Even more so has God promised to do that, even more does He perceive where we are at, and care for us.

He is there, even when we can’t see Him.  His presence, His protection, His comfort, His peace, His glory……

So rest, cling to the One who promised to be our God, who promised that we would be His people… and your heart will know what your mind can’t always process.

Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). Furrow (Kindle Locations 1584-1587). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.