What wonders await us here on Earth that we only have to open our eyes to see. Our time here on Earth is short, but the banquet Christ provides for us is a foretaste of the banquet to come. Yet, do we let our negative mindset shut the door of possibility or cloud our vision to the blessings before us here and now?
I have recently been reading an allegorical series in which the main characters finally make it to what, in their world, is considered Heaven. The characters are astounded by the beauty of the place and immediately begin looking around for all their friends and family members. Upon closer inspection, they find a small group of foes huddled together who seem not to be enjoying their surroundings. The main characters try to talk to this unfortunate group but quickly realize that what the foes are encountering is significantly different from what the main characters are experiencing in Heaven. When asked about their enjoyment of the blue sky and the beautiful fruit trees, the foes complain that they are in a room of darkness and cannot see these wonderful things, thus accusing the main characters of lying to them.
When finally God arrives, He shows the main characters that even now He is unable to reach the small woeful group because they have become so prideful, stubborn, determined, and resistant to their own wants and satisfactions that even when God places a beautiful banquet in front of them, they only taste rotten turnips and dirty water.
Aren’t we very much like this sometimes? We get so caught up in our desolation of not getting what we want, what we have prayed for, so determined that we must have these specific things or happiness cannot come, that we lose sight of the beauty or the banquet that is already before us. Desolation is, so much of the time, self-inflicted. We brood about what we want and cannot have or have been kept from. Our worries and grievances consume us. We are no longer able to see the good, the purpose, the divine plan.
It is times like these when we must realize that we are in desolation and need help opening our eyes to the beauty before us. We must ask ourselves, what has God blessed me with? This opens our eyes to our wonderful family surrounding us, a good job (even though we do not always enjoy it), financial well-being (even though it is never enough for us), and the basic needs we have that are met daily such as food, clothing, and a home to shelter us.
When I find myself in desolation – brooding over something I want or consumed by jealousy and anger – I look to my sweet daughter, who is a miracle for my husband and me. I look to my wonderful husband, who is committing to the journey of becoming a deacon in the Catholic Church. I look to my faith, my church, my steady job where I am living out my vocation, my simple but lovely home, and the resources that meet my family’s daily needs. Then I look up at the Carolina blue sky and the beauty of nature all around me. It is at times like these that I am reminded of 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18.
“Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”
I am right where God wants me to be. Even though the path to my own wants and desires does not seem to be progressing along at the speed I would like, I am truly where God wants me to be, just at the right point for His ultimate plan to be fulfilled within me.
Let our hearts not grow cold, as Jesus says in Matthew 24, but keep the warmth kindled to never miss the blessings around us each day. Remember, the things of this world will pass away (Matthew 24:34-35). Is the desolation we often find ourselves in related to something of this world or of Heaven? If it is of this world, let it not douse our flame for Christ and God’s ultimate plan for us. May our minds not be clouded, but our vision clear to look to the things of Heaven and partake heartily of the banquet before us.
April Parker is a teacher and curriculum director at St. Pius X Parish in Greensboro.