Every
day of our lives God approaches us in many different disguises, hungry for our
hospitality, hungry for our company and the love of our hearts. We often
complain that God has deserted us, that he does not answer our prayers, that he
does not take pity on our sufferings. We are oftentimes the ones who
do not know how to deal with the fact that, if anything, God has perhaps come
too close for comfort, though maybe we may be looking for him only ways
that flatter our vanity or indulge our self-centeredness. God approaches
us in ways that are mysterious, disorienting and challenging. God, the
Almighty, presents himself often in forms of neediness that deceive our logic
and that challenge us to lay aside our haughtiness and laziness in order to
become servants of anyone in need. The greatest, though not the
only, way of showing hospitality to God is to listen to his Word, to
receive what he has come to give us. Even at the purely human level, one
of the most important aspects of loving is knowing how to receive
love. How could this not be all the truer when we realize that God
has, literally, everything to give us?
Photograph of Fr. Robert at prayer by Br. Brian. Reflection
by Fr. Simeon.
