Sometimes Barely Is Good Enough

If you’re keeping up with my writing then you know that I am a convert. I refer to myself as a “Catholic toddler” because I have only been catholic for 6 years. The religion itself is so deep and rich in history around the world but also within people themselves. People whose family has been catholic for years and years and years. “Cradle Catholics” they call you when you are born and baptized Catholic shortly after. Because I am so fresh in my spiritual Christ walk, I find myself a little more on fire than most at times. I mean sure Catholicism is very reverent but never boring. Yet sometimes I’ve noticed myself looking around at people who just don’t seem to be present in the Presence of God. And for five years I thought of those people as lukewarm or cold in their faith. But my opinions all changed this last year in my faith. Trusting in God and moving across the country with no promise or understanding of why, just a gut feeling God was leading me to Ohio made ne doubtful. People coming in and out of my life distracting me from my faith and questioning my religion. At one point this year my own faith was shaken to its very core. Something I have never experienced. I began questioning so many things about being catholic. “Is Jesus really present in the Eucharist?” or “IS the rosary a religious voodoo?”

It was jostling to me and really made me stop. After a long confession I was assured that these things are normal in the faith. Ebbs and flows. And in those moments when I was barely clinging to my faith, I had to continue to tell myself “Sometimes barely is good enough.” Maybe your spiritual temperature is 105.3 and you’re literally ON FIRE for God you signed up in the church for ministry and you're talking and walking the faith. Or maybe you’re at a regular 98.6 just coming to church because you're supposed to kind of just existing in your faith. Or perhaps worse you're 95 degrees or lower. Your faith is waning and you’re barely hanging on to the idea that this faith is for you, that God exists or cares about you and you want to throw in the proverbial towel . I can say with utmost certainty that this is your sign that “sometimes barely is good enough.”

This is a relationship with Christ. Relationships are tricky and complicated. Friendships, marriages, family, work etc... all those relationships are complex and messy and sometimes even hard. But if we build and continue building our relationship with God then in those moments when we can barely hang on, He will pick us up and carry us. And it may not always feel like He is there or sees us at all. But I assure you that we each have our own crosses to carry. Each person with a beat in their heart and air in their lungs has a thorn in their side whether they are in pain about it or not. No matter what yours is if you offer it up to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, I assure you he will help carry your load. I read somewhere “The cross I have been given has been hand tested by Christ so that it will be neither too heavy nor too light.” I pray that if youre reading this now, and you feel burdened by your cross that you finally release it and lay it down for God to sort it out. Forgive that person. Make the hard phone call. Apologize to those you hurt. Free yourself of the burdens of this world because truly one day they will be nothing more than things we can't take into heaven.

Be Safe. Be great. Be YOU! Amen!