I took a deep breath and tried to focus on the needs of the individual across the table from me. I had thus far succeeded in shutting out the sounds of family life, but now I had a real person sitting beside me with expectant eyes peeking up over the cereal bowl. My bible, journal, reading glasses, and cold coffee lay in an arc around my laptop beckoning me back like the Sirens from Greek mythology.
Indignantly I asked myself: Was I really expected to drop everything when someone else wanted to chat? Had I completely failed thus far to teach my favorite people how to read my mood? Yet how do I turn away from the immediate requests from those in my home? How can I justify holding back a smile or a helping hand as I pursue higher intellectual thoughts? As I asked myself these questions, I found that I was on the path of the hypocrite, not the path of the righteous.
Much like the sailors who were called to their death by the sweet song of the Sirens in Homer’s Odyssey, we can sometimes set off seeking something good and only be drawn further into the darkness. We can sometimes withdraw seeking peace when in fact it is only isolation we find. Peace is only found in and through the Lord. Peace is an internal state which leads to an outward disposition that emanates around us.
Through the frustrations, conflicts and little struggles in life, we find the path of virtue. We grow in patience, fortitude, prudence, and temperance. Through these little daily interactions, we find the opportunity to recognize that peace is not found in the outward circumstances, it is found only in the love of Christ Jesus.
Sister, the next time you get pulled off your path, take a moment to call upon the Lord for He will rescue you and you in turn will glorify Him through your actions.
LOVING GOD, LOVING OTHERS
A NEW WORKSHOP
COME BACK TO FIRST LOVE
