We have to deal with many variables in life, and yet we
should never forget the constants. We need to give due attention to
both the incidentals and the essentials, giving them their proper
ranking. There are things that are pressing and that have to be
attended to right away, but these should not compromise what is truly
precious in our life.
This is not to mention that in our life, we have to unify
and integrate the different dimensions of our life—the material and
the spiritual, the natural and the supernatural, the temporal and the
eternal, the mundane and the sacred, etc.
Yes, we also have our ups and downs in life, successes and
defeats, moments of grace and light as well as those of sin and
darkness, and we should be ready to react properly to them.
Indeed, things can be very confusing, and we can seriously
doubt if we can ever manage to cope. We may choose to take it easy, or
to react merely by instinct. But I believe we can be more responsible
than that.
The secret is, of course, to go to Christ, to identify
ourselves vitally with him. He is the principle of unity and
integration in our life. He provides us with the power and the wisdom
to put the different things in our life in their proper order.
Let’s remember that in his priestly prayer just before his
passion and death, Christ asked the Father that all of us, and
everything about us, be one as he is one with the Father. “That they
may be one as you, Father, are in me, and I am in you,” he pleaded.
(Jn 17,21)
Toward this end, Christ opened himself to all possible
situations that man can get into, including to be like sin even if he
did not commit any sin at all, (cfr. 2 Cor 5,21), if only to show us
how to properly handle these possible situations and predicaments.
Definitely, with him we have to learn how to suffer, since
suffering would be unavoidable if we want to unify and integrate the
different things in life. He somehow would teach us what and when to
drop certain things to accommodate the more essential ones.
We really should try to conform our mind, heart, our will
and ways with those of Christ, otherwise we would find ourselves
suffering unnecessarily as we have to force ourselves to detach from
things that need to be dropped.
This, obviously, will require us to know more about
Christ, meditating on his words and deeds, on his whole life and
example. More than just knowing him, we have to love him, since that
is how we make ourselves one with him.
To be sure, in learning how to unify and integrate
everything into a meaningful and redemptive whole, we will commit
mistakes and there will be times when we can say, no, to Christ. Let’s
just hope that we can learn precious lessons from our mistakes, and
that we can immediately repent and convert from our disobedience.
Christ is always patient and merciful. He not only would
give us a second chance, but rather as many chances as we need!
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