By Catholic Editor, Faith E. Addington
Picture Credits to Steve Rich
Why do You feel so far? I found myself asking this question earlier this morning, a question that I ask every few months. However, it came to me suddenly as I was sitting in the chapel. He was not the far one, I was.
Distance from God doesn’t happen all at once or right away. It’s the slow chipping away of our thoughts before we look back and wonder where He has been the last few weeks, months, maybe even years. The truth is He never left. We just lost our ability to see and hear him; every sin fogging our spiritual lenses until we get so used to the fog, we forget the beautiful home we were looking at.
A friend once likened the spiritual life to a hike up a mountain. There are small hills and valleys, there are rocks and potholes, there are beautiful views but also the layers of dense trees confining us. We never have the complete picture until we arrive at the top, but we know that all the challenges are worth that enduring climb upwards.
There is no answer to this problem; it happens to all of us, but there are two words that help us to overcome the spiritual distance. Awareness and intentionality. It is easy to forget something that you don’t actively seek, especially in our busy lives. We must seek the Lord in everything that we do and be aware of our tendencies to forget. Wake up an extra ten minutes early, talk to God between classes, thank him for the beauty of His creation as you walk around campus. God is all around us and is not absent from a single corner of the world. We are never alone.
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
Psalm 23
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and staff they comfort me.
Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.
The Saint 