God always takes the initiative

THIS truth of our faith should console us. In our relation

with God, on which depends also our relation with others, it is God

who makes the first move before we do our part.

             Ours is only to correspond to his tremendous love that

knows no bounds, a love that is full of mercy—mercy being the summary

of all his wisdom and power insofar as we are concerned.

             We should do away with our ignorance or any doubt with

respect to this truth, and try our best to live by it as fully as

possible. That way, we relieve ourselves with unnecessary burden and

focus more on what we are supposed to do, that is, to love and to

serve God and everyone else.

  

            St. John in his first letter described this point very

well. “There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear,

because fear involves punishment. The one who fears has not been

perfected in love. We love because He (God) first loved us.” (4,18-19)

  

            This truth was lived to the full by Christ himself. With

his passion, death and resurrection, he has offered us forgiveness of

our sins even before we can ask for forgiveness.

             And in his post-resurrection appearances to his disciples,

he would always greet them with peace. He likes to reassure them,

avoiding as much as possible to startle them. In that story about the

two men on their way to Emmaus, he did not immediately make himself

known but blended with them in a friendly conversation.

             This is how God treats each one of us. He does it with

full tenderness and compassion. We have no reason to be afraid or to

be anxious. In fact, in those instances when Christ would appear to

his disciples in an extraordinary way, as when he was seen walking on

the water, he would reassure them by saying, “Do not be afraid. It is

I.”

  

            With all this divine goodness, we on our part should be

quick to recognize God in all the circumstances and situations of our

life. Let us make certain adjustments in the way we see, perceive and

understand things to accommodate this wonderful truth of our faith.

  

            Let’s give ample space in our consciousness to this truth

of our faith. We should try to feel God’s constant presence, nay, his

abiding love and mercy for us. And this can mean taking care of our

spiritual faculties, that is, our intellect and will, cuing or

prompting them to this wonderful reality.

  

            Yes, it is important that we make many acts of faith

during the day, and make use of any human devices that can help and

reinforce this awareness of God’s constant presence and love for us.

             We can, for example, associate certain things or actions

or events with some acts of piety. Like, every time we open and close

a door, climb up or down the stairs, see a blue or white car, etc.,

etc., we can make some act of faith, hope and charity.

             We need to learn these skills if only to avoid failing to

correspond to God’s tremendous love for us everyday. We have to learn

to find Christ in the little things which comprise most of our day, if

not of our whole life.

  

            We need to be more aware of this reality about ourselves,

since we often do not realize it, dominated as we are with the merely

material and sensible realities and with what is the here-and-now and

what is immediately felt. We many times fail to go beyond this level.

  

            God is in everything. He is behind all events in our life.

We need to be constantly aware of this truth in order to have peace

and joy whatever the circumstances, and poised to do good only and

always.