"Whoever loves me will keep my word, and my Father will love him and we will come to him" (John 14:23).

My son pushed back his chair, slammed down his bowl, and turned his body away from mine. He was two, and I was twenty-seven. He was willful, and I was exhausted. NO was his new favorite word, and refusing food was his new favorite pastime. I heard the baby's cries upstairs in her crib so I, too, turned away from him and took the stairs two-by-two to soothe the one child in the household who would listen to my voice.

This new pattern of my son rejecting everything burned my weary mothering heart. It was also totally developmentally normal, this push for independence. But it was hard to be calm and loving and patient many times a day about many instances. So I yelled, insisted, threatened, and cried myself to sleep in my parenting books.

I am ten years older, and now I am like this child was when it comes to what God is offering me. His calling for me in this season has been to serve my family. I often would rather something more flashy and "important." In fact, no thanks on turning over the laundry in a timely way, no thanks on caring for my postpartum beat-up body after five kiddos, I'd rather not do my stretches, no thanks to helping with yet another night of kids' homework.

But God is calling you and me, repeatedly, to follow His word. When we do live out what is in front of us, His will for our lives, He comes and brings us His love. He makes it all more smooth, more feasible. Our toddler-like refusal is not daunting to Him. He's not going to force us or yell at us. He will simply present the opportunity to keep His word again and again.

God wants to come to you and show you His love, so how can you invite Him today? What part of His word are you rejecting and therefore keeping Him at bay? Embrace the sacrament of the present moment.

[bctt tweet="Embrace the sacrament of the present moment. // Nell O'Leary" username="blessedisshe__"]

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