My God has sent me Graces for the journey and this means that I have everything that I need…
Very occasionally I will drive my children to school. This will happen if they have an early morning excursion or a camp and they need to arrive at school early for this. It could also happen if they are feeling a little car sick before they even sit on the school bus and I think to myself that I could save them the whole long experience by just picking them up (when time permits) and driving them directly to school in the morning.
In the mornings before school we very often collect my sister’s children (who attend the same school) and who catch the bus with my own children. When this happens we make sure that if we are going to drive into school that we take those other children with us for the ride rather than letting them catch the bus all alone.
Each time I drive those children into school I try to arrange a little treat for them if we have enough time for it. And the treat might be a little bit of McDonalds, or a piece of cake for their lunch if I have had time to bake one for the children the night before.
And I have been thinking about this today as I have been thinking about the Gift of Grace. You see, God also sits me on a school bus each morning of my life. And just as my children’s school bus takes many twists and turns, and takes longer to arrive at their destination than a car would so too does this Gift of Grace mean that my life takes twists and turns that I would otherwise not expect to see.
And just as at times, I go out of my way to show those children that they are foremost on my mind – by driving them to school myself or giving them a treat – so too does God show that I am foremost on His mind when He allows me to special signal Graces that indicate to me that I am on the right track and moving in the same direction. And these Signal Graces could look like a job well done or a situation that resolves itself favourably.
And I have been thinking about that today as well because it seems to me that I spend an awful lot of time in my life waiting to arrive at my destination and wondering why the bus ride is taking so long or is so inconvenient. Instead, what I should be doing is enjoying the company of the Saints on the journey with me (just as my children and their cousins enjoy each other’s company) and settle in for the ride.
For there is one thing that I know for sure and that is that my God has sent me Graces for the journey and this means that I have everything that I need…
For with prayer, I stand on Holy Ground where everything is clear. Here. At the Foot of the Cross.