Daily Reflection for Friday, September 09, 2022
Peace and Blessings, Friends and Parishioners!
We encourage you to reflect on Friday’s readings at this link:
http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/090922.cfm
If you prefer to use your own Bible, the readings are:
First Reading: 1 Corinthians 9:16-19,22B-27
Responsorial: Psalm 84:3-6,12
Gospel: Luke 6:39-42
Our reflection on Friday’s readings:
Blessed are those whose strength is in you, whose hearts are set on pilgrimage. Psalm 84:5
I’ve been spending a fair amount of time this year thinking about my path, my purpose. When my dad passed away in January, the caregiver responsibilities which had anchored my daily thoughts and actions for more than 6 years dissipated and I was left with time and space to wonder, “what now?”
I love the image of this earthly life as a journey. Looking back, I can see the twists and turns of that journey to date. If I reflect and am honest, I can see the times when I was on the right path and the times when I took a detour. Sometimes those were intentional choices to take a different path, sometimes I just wasn’t paying attention and got diverted.
But looking forward is much more challenging. Discerning a new direction has always been tough for me. Maybe it’s because I’m overly analytical, or because I am an overachiever and want to be sure I choose correctly. Either way, the future path is a bit foggy for me right now.
One of my personal lessons from the pandemic we’ve been experiencing is that we can make plans, but we need to remain flexible, responsive, and resilient to unexpected obstacles and challenges, or we risk severe disappointment. Said another way, I’ve learned how little control we have over what happens on the road ahead.
The verse from today’s psalm reminded me of Thomas Merton’s well-known prayer:
My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think that I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road, though I may know nothing about it.
May we set our hearts on the pilgrimage.
Peace and love,
Andra Liepa