The Little Way

My nephew called me a few days before Independence Day and asked me if I had already purchased fireworks for the fourth of July.  I smiled and asked him why he wasn’t asking his dad about it this and confidently he said because you are my cool aunt.  Needless to say (though I am terrified of fireworks even the less threatening sparklers) I stopped on my way home from dinner and bought a small batch to please my eight-year-old. On the night of the fourth, watching his excitement as together we conquered our fears igniting all sorts of small rockets, warmed my heart and I knew that this moment would be a memory I would forever treasure… Have you ever contemplated how to be more loving? How to be kinder towards others? How to approach each day with the desire to lift all those who God places in your path specially friends and family… I have been thinking a lot about that lately.  While I find it easier to be affectionate towards people that I trust and who I have a long history with – I want to be instinctively kind towards everyone.

When I began my conversion I was like a proud Isaiah volunteering for the prestigious roles in ministry, “send me Lord to minister to foreign lands, to speak to large conventions and to transform the world.”  Though I was beginning to change I was measuring spiritual success in the way I had always measured worldly success through fame, wealth and power.  I wanted to keep my naïve dreams of being a famous author and speaker, but to now do it in God’s name.  Since my initial conversion, I like to think that I have matured and that now my dreams are less grandiose and maybe even a little more God-centered (smile); yet, I still struggle to live out my Christian vocation in my everyday life with my everyday people.  Most of the time it’s easier to be kind to members in our Christian community or even strangers but a challenge to be nice to our families and close friends.  It’s rewarding even enjoyable to volunteer once in a while at a senior home, hospital, feeding the homeless, etc., but so challenging to be helpful (daily) at home and work.  When we are at a Christian conference and the speaker asks for a glass of water, many people rush to get the speaker a cold, bottled water- sometimes the speaker doesn’t even need to ask because someone is already handing them a drink.  Yet, at home when our loved one asks for a glass of water, we are quick to whine and say, “Get, up and get it yourself.”  It’s just easier to be kind in public to strangers than it is in our private lives to people who have hurts us and who we have full knowledge of their character and flaws.  Yet, the great majority of us will have to live our Christian lives just as ordinary people.  Our sanctification will happen through ordinary life experiences.  In fact, all the saints were regular people who lived with intentionality, passion, a great desire to please God – but mostly (men and women) who glorified God by living ordinary lives in an extraordinary way.

Saint Therese of Lisieux is famous for “the little way” in which she lived life, however, when she died many were surprised at her sanctification because she lived her life in such an ordinary way.  She was very private even secretive in doing small things with great love for God.  In her view, holiness is not achieved by doing great and dramatic things (which lead to pride); it is to do small things with care, kindness and humility for the love of God and for the love of neighbor.  Her spirituality motivates me in this new period of my spiritual life in which I want to focus on being more loving and kind.  I am learning that when I am loving and kind I never have regrets; however, when I am too stubborn or afraid and withhold then the regrets just pile up.  We only have one person who we can control, change and who can impact our lives and the lives of others and that is ourselves.  Right now, you don’t need to wait for the perfect moment- at this minute the person you are can be the biggest blessing to the world around you.  Ask God to send you: to love the hurt, the rejected, the afflicted, but to first love those people He gave you as family and friends.  Be loving first, be kind first, be forgiving first…