“And he sought to see Him.” (Luke 9:9).
Have you ever had an itch in the wrong place – somewhere where you could not reach (under a cast, or in the middle of your back)? When that happens, it is almost impossible to settle down with all the discomfort that a simple little itch can cause…
In fact, when this has happened to me, I have been almost driven to distraction by the annoyance of that itch.
Saint Augustine is such an interesting Saint to me. He was a man who was very very unholy for a long long time in his life. And then – one day – he felt God call to him and he completely changed his life and began to follow God. And as a result of his diligence with God and his love of God for the reminder of his life, he became a doctor of the Church and someone who brought many other souls to God… Saint Augustine said, “You made us, Lord, for Yourself and our hearts are restless until they rest in You.”
And I have been thinking of that today… You see, I believe that ALL people seek God, but not all people look for Him in the right places.
For what IS God? He is all Goodness and Love. In other words, to know God is to know JOY – complete JOY…
And how do we seek this in the world? Well, we seek this through buying things and undergoing experiences. We seek this by surrounding ourselves with noise and things and people and stuff… And really – in essence – we are seeking JOY (not happiness or pleasure which are fleeting and unfulfilling, but true and perfect JOY)…
And it was the same even in Christ’s time…
“Herod the tetrarch heard of all that was done, and he was perplexed, because it was said by some that John had been raised from the dead, by some that Elijah had appeared, and by others that one of the old prophets had risen. Herod said, ‘John I beheaded; but who is this about whom I hear such things?’ And he sought to see Him.” (Luke 9:7-9).
Even Herod sought God – but he sought God in the same way he sought any distraction. He lived for pleasure and that pleasure was the problem in his world… Pope Francis says, “The emptier a person's heart is, the more he or she needs things to buy, own and consume.”And trying to find God by surrounding ourselves with the JUNK of this world is like trying to scratch an itch under a plaster cast… It is impossible. And it will only leave us feeling more uncomfortable. And eventually that itch will be all consuming and the only thing that we can even think of. And instead of considering all the things of life, we will be consumed with an itch we cannot reach. And just as people who have plaster casts covering their bones may try to scratch themselves using sticks and other things against their skin, so too do we cause ourselves all sorts of trouble when we try to scratch the itch of being with God, by seeking Him in all the wrong places…
For with prayer, I stand on Holy Ground where everything is clear. Here. At the Foot of the Cross.
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