An Encounter with a Begging Woman that Reflected My Own Poverty
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In today’s Gospel we hear these words that awaken us: “Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy from carousing and drunkenness and the anxieties of daily life and that day catch you by surprise.”
These words hit us post-election, post-Thanksgiving, at year-end, during the holiday season of celebrations, and just as it seems like our world is about to erupt in a bigger war. It is precisely now that we all feel a bit tired and drowsy, anxious, and wanting to drown our worries in carousing, drunkenness, and whatever other pleasures seem to help us cope and forget about all the trials in our midst.
Even my heart is admittedly prone to drowsiness. I just slept 10+ hours each night the last four days because the world has truly become exhausting to live in. The pressures, the trials, the anxieties, the sorrows, the fears about where our world is going…sometimes it is all too much for us and it makes our hearts drowsy.
So what do we do about it?
Later in the Gospel, Jesus gives us a clue. He tells us to pray that we have the strength to endure the time of tribulation. Pray for strength to endure the trials of today and the tribulations of tomorrow. He doesn’t say to pray that the trials and tribulations cease, because they won’t. But He does say that we can pray for God’s strength to help us through them.
Life is an endurance test. God’s strength is the only way to get through it.
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.
