Beyond the Honeymoon
“When I first became Catholic,” a friend said to me, “it was easy. God showed up! I had new insights and experiences and I could feel his presence in prayer. But now…”
You can probably guess what she said next.
The honeymoon period my friend experienced with Jesus petered out into, well, just regular day-to-day Catholic life.
I have known the ups and downs of the spiritual life, and I bet you have, too. I can point to some seriously rich and rewarding seasons! But there are plenty of humdrum, dry, and mundane times as well.
What keeps you committed to following Jesus, even on the tough (or boring) days?
Glimpses of the Promised Land
For me, it’s glimpses. Glimpses of the good life. Glimpses of the Promised Land.
Jesus gave Peter, James, and John a glimpse of his glory at the Transfiguration on Mount Tabor.
Did holding onto that glimpse give John the courage to follow Jesus to Calvary? Did it fill him with hope as he sprinted toward the tomb three days later?
The Israelites were promised a land flowing with milk and honey, but the path there led them through the desert. Though they had no milk or honey in the desert, they got glimpses of what was ahead. Glimpses of the God who provides, the one who is faithful. Every day without fail the manna appeared and they were cared for.
One foot in front of the other. Little by little. Tastes of heaven.
The Toughest Love on Earth
But it’s easy to forget. We need friends who are with us on the way, who will remind us of God’s goodness when we’re not feeling it ourselves.
I imagine Peter, James, and John encouraging each other in their low moments and the Israelites reminding one another of God’s mighty deeds to keep moving forward.
Listen to how the first Franciscans supported one another in their prayer (it was difficult for them, too!):
Those who were beginners in prayer had to learn it the hard way, through all the alternations of dryness, self-disgust and shame, boredom and hopelessness, shot through with those moments of light that made it all worthwhile. They had Francis to help them, for he had come this way before them . . . and they had the love of each other, that love of a small closely knit community suffering the same things together which is about the toughest love on earth.
– My God and My All: The Life of St. Francis of Assisi by Elizabeth Goudge
We tend to think of heaven as out there, after death, ahead of us—and that’s true. But what tastes of heaven, what glimpses, is God already giving you? Where is the difficulty shot through with moments of light that make it all worthwhile?
Take some time this Lent to savor the moments when God has poured himself to you in lavish ways or in small, yet powerful, moments.
And don’t keep them to yourself. Find (or create) a small closely knit community you can share them with.
Build each other up. Strengthen one another with the glimpses the Lord gives, encouraging each other to persist through the desert toward the Promised Land.
Have you invited a few friends to keep each other encouraged along the way? Get our starter kit and group discussion guides emailed to you each month to enhance your group sessions.
Andrea Jackson is a Content Creator and Ministry Consultant at the Evangelical Catholic. The Evangelical Catholic’s mission is to equip Catholics to live out the Great Commission.
