In many parts of the United States, students and teachers returned to class in August. Any time is a time to start anew, to start with fresh notebooks and pencils/pens. Any time is also a good time to refresh our spiritual lives.
Each new day is ‘THE present.’ THE present is also A present, a gift. Each day we can start fresh, even if we are still doing the same things. We can receive the graces to do this at any time. We can try to do ordinary things “extraordinarily well.” Saint Katharine reminds us that when we receive Holy Communion, we have “graces poured down upon us without number.” If we are open to these graces, if we are willing to go along with what God asks us to do, we will succeed. We may not get all A’s or 100’s, but we will be following God’s will and that can make us a saint.
On September 10, 1946, Sister Teresa of the Loreto Sisters was on a train, enroute to an annual retreat when she had an “experience with God.” Years later she was Mother Teresa of Calcutta, foundress of the Missionaries of Charity.
We can have an “experience” with God at Mass, in our prayer spot at home, or while enjoying a sunrise or sunset or the laugh of a child. Any time we think of God or pause to listen to Him, the Holy Spirit can fill us with the divine, connecting us with the Holy Trinity. Saint Katharine encourages us to open our “hearts to the God that calls you now.” We don’t have to start a new religious community after this encounter with God. We might be encouraged to smile at someone, making them smile in return. In doing this, we may have brightened their day.
Whether you are starting something new, or just “keeping on keeping on,” may the Holy Spirit inspire you and fill you with courage to continue on the path God has designed for you.
