“Whoever enters through me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture.

A thief comes only to steal and slaughter and destroy; I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly.” // John 10:9-10

It was my first time on a yacht in the ocean, and until then seasickness had been a foreign concept to me. I remember the doctor giving me a shot on the arm and falling fast asleep. When morning came I woke up with vomit up all over my arm. Creeping over to my cabin window, I peered through the shade. The water was calm, it was crystal clear, and it was a turquoise blue that I had never seen before in any body of water. It was truly breathtaking. 

I had been hired as a nanny on this private yacht for a milestone birthday celebration. This world that I had entered into was completely detached from my everyday life.

There were new menus created daily, my cabin was turned down every night, and when I had free time I would go up to the deck, gaze at the incredible view, and play with the golf simulator (mostly because it was there—not because I was an avid golfer). 

I could see where this world could sweep one away with all of its excess and luxury. It would be easy to find pasture here and think it is a life of abundance (see John 10:10). 

Spending time with the invited guests reminded me of Christ’s words, “For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be” (Matthew 6:21). The “treasure” of excess and luxury can feel like the pinnacle of fulfillment.

This trip through the Southern Caribbean overwhelmed me with a sense of what the thieves in our lives can be when we do not have our eyes fixed on our Good Shepherd: wealth, social media, material possessions, excessive preoccupation about the future, obsession over politics, academic superiority, etc.

There is much that can deter us from living a truly abundant life when we don’t enter through the gate. 

Sister, what thief have you allowed to interfere with your relationship with Jesus? Pray again with today’s Gospel (John 10:1-10) and listen to the stirrings of your heart.