It’s a rainy Saturday evening here in Indiana in the U.S. The remnants of a recent hurricane are dumping inches of rain on the area, and it has just been a cool, dreary day. And so, it was a perfect day to be in a room with 100+ other Catholic men, seeking to grow in our faith. This was the second year we put on this men’s conference, and it has become a great event for the men of our parish. This is also partly the reason I am posting so late. Well, that and I’m a procrastinator and failed to get this written earlier in the week!
Anyway, there was a young gentleman at my table, not too far out of college, a father of a young child, husband to a young wife. He was looking at the world, at himself, the responsibility of being a father and husband in today’s world and he was frightened – frightened of who he was, and who he was not. He saw all his faults, his shortcomings, and he was worried that he was not being the man he should be.
As I reflected on these readings this evening, I could not help but think about this fear. And the following verse in the first reading from Isaiah stuck out to me:
Thus says the LORD:
Say to those whose hearts are frightened: Be strong, fear not!
Here is your God, he comes with vindication;
with divine recompense he comes to save you.
Fear not! But in the midst of this world, how can we feel this way? How can we live it?
Now I share some of these same fears with this man. I look in the mirror every day and wonder how I can live up to the person God intends me to be, who He wills that I be. I’ve been in his shoes, wondering how I can possibly be an adequate husband and father.
But then I remember readings like the one above, littered all throughout the Bible about how God shows no partiality. He shows no bias and He will give us the strength to weather any storm in our lives, He will give us the strength to overcome any challenge, and yes, any fears that block our path in life.
He loves us all, always. Good and bad. Sin or no sin. He wants the best for us, yet we have to choose it. He cannot force us to make the decisions. He can influence, but ultimately, we need to make the choice to seek Him, to love Him, and to love others. And its through Jesus where this example is set.
The most important thing, the biggest piece of the puzzle is simply showing up. And so that’s the message we told this young man at our table – the fact that you’re here, at this event, asking these questions about yourself and seeking to get better – that’s half the battle, maybe more. You simply showed up. You’re on the right track. Don’t give up. Don’t get discouraged. Don’t give in to the fear. Fight. Seek Him. Seek His love.
