What's Contributing to Lack of Belonging in the Church? Averted Eyes
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Truth. We can hear God's truth in the Word. We can know God's truth in the Word. But are we awakened to God's truth in the Word?
I'm a lover of the Word, I must say. I constantly read and cling to the words of Scripture. They comfort me. They challenge me. They guide me.
I ponder them all day long. I try to figure out there meaning with zealous reading and reflection, and listening to wise teachers.
My journal is full of lines of Scripture that have touched me, what I think God is speaking to me through those words, and short prayers and resolutions based on those words.
But hearing the Word and knowing the truth in your mind are different than being awakened to the truth in your heart. We can go months and even years with hearing and knowing the truth, but not really have it sink into our hearts and change our lives.
For the last couple years, the Holy Spirit has been awakening me to the truth of the Word, especially the Gospels. Often, it takes a real encounter or experience for me to come face to face with the truth of the Word.
When that happens, something clicks. The Word has made its way to my heart. I've experienced the truth of it in my everyday life. The Spirit reveals its meaning.
This is especially true of service to others. I'm consistently awakened to this paradox of beauty and joy in serving the poor and sick, and encountering them in their suffering. This is a Gospel truth: The suffering were close to Jesus. They are close to the heart of God. We become close to the heart of God by encountering them.
Similarly, the Eucharist. The real presence of Jesus in the body and blood feeding and nourishing our souls. This is something beautiful and mysterious to be experienced -- not just something to hear and know.
Be open to going beyond hearing and beyond knowing. Become awakened. Seek to encounter the truths of the Gospel in your everyday life. Let the Holy Spirit guide and reveal to you these truths, and continually ask yourself:
What Gospel truths is the Spirit trying to awaken you to?
Katie Zalany lives in Cleveland Ohio. She is a Third Order Secular Franciscan (OFS), spiritual director, benefits/wellness leader, certified health and life coach, and volunteer. She is the creator of the ministry Women in Waiting | Made for Fruitfulness and is a published author. Her writing interests and focus areas include Gospel reflections, Franciscan spirituality, women's spirituality, prayer, and integration of faith and daily living.
