SATURDAY OF THE SECOND WEEK OF LENT
Show us wonderful
signs.
My mother is a firm believer in white birds. For her, the
spotting of a white bird has marked many significant decisions and life events.
(If her logic holds true, then the white bird I saw this week must mean
something big is headed my way.) Whether it be a white bird or the way the
ocean hugs the shore, the smile of a stranger or the peaceful stillness of
silence, signs of God’s love abound. The question is whether or not we notice
them.
In today’s gospel, the way the father “ran to his son,
embraced him and kissed him” and welcomed him home with celebration was a sign
of his love and forgiveness for his younger son. The older son needed more help
seeing it, but the father’s actions were a sign to him too – a sign of mercy and
compassion and a call to rejoice and celebrate.
All too easily I fall into complacency with my own
relationship with God. I, like the older son in today’s gospel, take for
granted that I am “here with [my Father] always.” If I’m not careful, the
habituality of routine, whether good or bad, weakens my awareness. The
extraordinary closeness of God becomes ordinary to me, and I unknowingly close
myself off to the many wonderful signs God sends us.
Signs of God’s kindness and compassion, mercy and forgiveness
greet us daily and invite us to be signs of that unconditional love in return.
Just as the father pleaded with the older son to enter the house and join in
the celebration, we are called to be extensions of God’s wonderful signs. Let
us catch sight of them, run to and embrace them, and celebrate them as the
father sees and responds to his returning son.
This Lent, may we not only be aware of God’s wonderful signs
but also be those signs ourselves. May we see the signs in our everyday, that
we too may understand our place at the larger table and see cause for
celebration.
Anne Milne is a senior studying public health, a CLC
facilitator, and the sacristan for the Campus Ministry masses.
No comments:
Post a Comment