Daily Retreat 12/15/06
2006 Dec 15 Fri:Advent
Is 48:17-19; Ps 1:1-2,3,4 and 6; Mt 11:16-19
From today's readings: "I, the LORD, your God, teach you what is for your good, and lead you on the way you should go.... Those who follow you, Lord, will have the light of life.... wisdom is vindicated by her works..."
For Your Own Good
So often, you and I resist God's teachings and His will in our lives because it somehow seems distasteful, demanding, or detrimental to our own sense of happiness. But our resistance is illogical and often tragic because, intellectually, we know well that God knows best what IS best for us; and, since He is all-good, He ONLY wants the best for us; therefore, simply following His will and teachings will always be best for us!
Temptations, though, make us get mixed up: we stop seeking what God wants (viz., what objectively is best for us), and instead, start desiring what God doesn't want for us - that which He knows is NOT good for us! So we end up being like the cranky child who wants to stay up late even though his mother, who knows how tired he really is, tells him it's time for bed!
In the book of Isaiah, God reminds us, "I, the LORD, your God, teach you what is for your good, and lead you on the way you should go." You and I can best use the rest of these days of Advent to put to rest our disordered resistance to His will, simply remembering that God always knows best!
Is 48:17-19; Ps 1:1-2,3,4 and 6; Mt 11:16-19
From today's readings: "I, the LORD, your God, teach you what is for your good, and lead you on the way you should go.... Those who follow you, Lord, will have the light of life.... wisdom is vindicated by her works..."
For Your Own Good
So often, you and I resist God's teachings and His will in our lives because it somehow seems distasteful, demanding, or detrimental to our own sense of happiness. But our resistance is illogical and often tragic because, intellectually, we know well that God knows best what IS best for us; and, since He is all-good, He ONLY wants the best for us; therefore, simply following His will and teachings will always be best for us!
Temptations, though, make us get mixed up: we stop seeking what God wants (viz., what objectively is best for us), and instead, start desiring what God doesn't want for us - that which He knows is NOT good for us! So we end up being like the cranky child who wants to stay up late even though his mother, who knows how tired he really is, tells him it's time for bed!
In the book of Isaiah, God reminds us, "I, the LORD, your God, teach you what is for your good, and lead you on the way you should go." You and I can best use the rest of these days of Advent to put to rest our disordered resistance to His will, simply remembering that God always knows best!
posted by FrPitstick | 12/15/2006
<< Home