In the course of your daily experiences, do you feel God come close?
When? How?
I came across this quote in an old daily reflection written by Richard Rohr (I think it also makes it into his latest book the Universal Christ as well). In the reflection, he speaks about God being present in every moment – definitely the inexplicably beautiful ones but also the boring ones, the frustrating ones, the sorrowful ones, and even the ones that slip by almost completely without note.
God is right there… intricately present in all things.
I thought a lot about this quote and reflection last night and today.
At first, I thought I’d rather God not be present for my grumpier moments. I thought I’d rather God not be present for those moments that I say something stupid, do something wrong, or make a terrible decision… I mean it’s enough that I was there and that my mind and heart often chooses to hold onto just these moments with the tightest grip.
But I also realized that’s exactly where I need God to be the most.
It’s actually comforting to imagine God there not trying to fix anything, not trying to quiet down my irritation or tell me to do something different or BE someone different…
It’s comforting to imagine God simply being there… for all of it. The good, the bad, and the incredibly messy.
There is an Ignatian tool that I don’t rely on as much as I should that helps one find God present in ALL the things and in ALL the moments. It’s called the Ignatian Examen, and it’s basically spending intentional time reflecting on one’s day to find where God was near as well as find when God felt more distant and bringing those moments to prayer.
I think sometimes I use the Examen wrong. Sometimes I catch myself using it as a way to evaluate my day (and my performance during it) rather than a way to simply bring to mind the moments of God that I missed.
But the later is more in tune with its intended purpose.
The Examen is simply to remember these words of Paula D’Arcy: “God comes to us disguised as our life”….
… and recognize that every day in a multitude of ways…
… the Divine never stopped being human and walking alongside us.
