Hope everyone is having a blessed Holiday Season!
With the beginning of 2010 just weeks away, I can’t help but stop to reflect on the “good” and “bad” events of this past year. At this time last year, my prayers were answered when my ex-wife called to discuss a possible change of custody … Laura and I had just arrived at Logan International Airport in Boston, MA and were heading towards her hometown. For over seven years, all I could do was offer Austin a glimmer of hope that his mother would eventually listen to him and send him back to me. Christmas time is usually a time when we wish for all kinds of things that we may want, but rarely do we really wish for things that we actually need. What is the difference? Something that I want may fulfill a temporary void. On the other hand, something that I “need” will be as significant tomorrow as much as it was today or yesterday. People often bitch and moan about how God does not listen because they’re prayers were not answered. To them, I offer this: God will never give you more than you can handle, and will always provide you with the things that you need. Therefore stop asking for “junk” and start asking for love and guidance. My prayers are simple when I pray. I simply ask for God’s love, strength, and guidance to do always act and react towards others with love, fairness, and compassion. When you open your heart to God and your fellow man, you are also making it easier for love to come back to you. Please keep this mind as we get closer to Christmas and 2010.
I recall being so excited on Christmas Day as a child as I tore through gift-wrappings. I would play and tinker with my toys and gifts for hours until I got absolutely sick of them. Without fail, by the time the New Year would take place, I would lose interest and reduce my gifts to merely another pile of junk. My sense of appreciation for the many immaterial blessings that God has provided for me increased immeasurably as I was able to distinguish and separate things that I need from things that I want. Today in my late 30’s, I find myself ever more thankful that I have a healthy immediate and extended family. I once chased money and found myself becoming more unhappy, self-centered, and ALONE. No matter how much money I accumulated, there just never seemed to be enough. It was literally a never-ending saga that left me exhausted at the end of days. The sustenance that I was able to afford was no better than that of what I was able to afford when I had less … with my pockets becoming fuller, I began to feel more empty with meaning. I can’t speak for anyone else, but I enriched myself at the cost of others and at the end of the day, I alienated myself from humanity.
I am glad that God gave me the wisdom and guidance to turn myself around. It was not until I gave of myself to others that I began to feel more complete with my life. The interesting thing is that the more that I cared about others, the less money that I was able to generate. There were times during this transition that I was afraid of losing my home and not being able to put food on the table, but my faith that God would never abandon me kept me strong until I could establish balance in my life. Just when I thought that things could not get any worse, they got better. I kept remembering something that I heard in mass years ago as a child while attending St. Joseph’s Catholic School in Port Arthur, TX: “Those who exalt themselves will be humbled, while those who humble themselves will be exalted.” It took me giving up almost everything before I was able to achieve it all. Anyone that knows me knows that I am not a perfect Christian. However, I am not foolish to believe that I can accomplish anything without God. Simply put, I may be able to do some things without God … but with God, I can do EVERYTHING.