Too often we have taken God
for granted. So sometimes He asks others “to shake things up.” Today may be one
of those days.
Here is a question worth
pondering now and in the days to come:
“What if God loved you only as much as you loved Him?”
(Father Francis Hudson, S.C.J.)
Have
you ever loved someone so much that you could hardly wait to hear from them, to
speak with them and to see them? How often have you looked forward to a visit
from someone you deeply love only to have that person not come? How hurt have
you felt when you were ignored and your love not returned?
Imagine
then how God - Who is Love – Who loves us more than words can describe - feels
when we fail to demonstrate our love for Him? He waits in our churches hour
after hour just to hear our voices and to see our faces.
Yet, few of us come to be
with Him.
God
is the sole source of real peace amidst the chaos, challenges and trials of our
daily lives. But the noise and busyness that surrounds us prevents us from
experiencing that peace as God intended we do.
Pope
Benedict XVI recently reminded us that attendance at Sunday Mass is simply not
enough. Adoration should never have been de-emphasized. It is a real reminder
that Jesus is always here with us in the Blessed Sacrament.
“To really communicate with another person”, the Pope
wrote, “I must know him, I must be able to be in silence, close to him, to hear
him, and to look at him with love.”
(Corpus Christi
On
another occasion, the Holy Father had this to say:
“In silence, we are
better able to listen to and understand ourselves; …. By remaining silent we
allow the other person to speak, to express himself; and we avoid being tied
simply to our own words and ideas without them being adequately tested. In this
way, space is created for mutual listening, and deeper …relationships become
possible…"
"If God speaks to us even in silence, we in turn
discover in silence the possibility of speaking with God and about God.”
(World Communications
Day 2012)
Why go to Adoration?
God deserves it. He is
entitled to it. He has asked us to watch one hour with Him. You find the time
to be with the one you love.
According
to the Missionaries of the Blessed Sacrament, every hour we spend in the
presence of the Blessed Sacrament:
- deepens our union with Jesus, transforms us into the
very image and likeness of God Himself, and makes up for those who do not know
Him or do not love Him;
- draws the world and everyone in it closer to Christ;
- lifts up the whole world to the Father for His
blessing; and
- saves a soul from going to hell.
Let me hasten to state that time before the Blessed
Sacrament is no guaranty of a struggle free life. But He does promise
sufficient graces to carry our daily crosses and eternity with Him for those who love Him.
Adoration
is for everyone. But I don’t have the
time you say. Consider these statistics from Father Oscar Lukefahr, C.M.:
If you live to be eighty you would have spent about 3
years reading, 5 years talking, 6 years riding in a car, 7 years eating, 11
years in recreational activities and 27 years sleeping. If you offered an hour
of adoration each week you would have given Jesus less than 6 months of your
life. Add attendance at Sunday Mass and 5 minutes of daily prayer to your
weekly holy hour and you would have given Him a little less than I year of your
time.
You have the time. You just
have to choose to do it.
“Adoration is not just one more thing to do like going
to the store, the doctor, etc. It is an encounter with Christ. His love changes
and orders our life.”
(Father James M. Sullivan, OP)
I
am a much different person today than I was before making a commitment to
weekly adoration. I have a deeper and more profound love for God, my wife and
my family. I think more often of others before myself. I still offend God but
am quicker to seek the Sacrament of Reconciliation. I love Mass and the Holy
Eucharist. I joyfully jump out of bed each Saturday morning at 3 AM to be with
Him.
Can I be bold enough to ask
you another question:
How much do YOU
love God?
What are you waiting for?
Consider this a personal
invitation from Jesus Himself.
He awaits you with open and
loving arms.
That’s His promise.
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