Journeying to Grace

The Catholic Church closest to me has a small 24-hour Adoration Chapel. Thankfully, it is open to anyone during regular business hours. I try to go once in a while and am certainly fulfilled by my time there. The chapel itself is small, just two rows of a few short pews. The feel of the environment is ‘modern’ with some fancy accents and décor. Not too much though – just enough to encourage reverence.

When I’m there, it takes me a while to ‘settle in’ and clear my mind of the many thoughts running through it. During one of my recent visits, I had just reached that state of focus and was looking forward to being fully in prayer when a young mother came in with her two children. The baby girl was about two months old, and the little boy about two years old. The large stroller banged through the chapel door because the mother’s arms were full, pushing the stroller while carrying a baby bag and a small backpack. The three made their way to a pew on the opposite side of me, but in a room so small, everyone there could hear them clearly. The mother situated herself with the baby in her arms while the boy got out many toys from the backpack and alternated from standing on the floor to standing on the kneeler. Many times, the mother put her finger to her lips and whispered “shhh” to him. The little boy wasn’t misbehaving. He was being a happy, playful two-year-old. How could he understand the expectation of quiet? I felt for this mother. She was there to pray and be enveloped in the presence of Christ, too.

With the ongoing interruption, I lost focus and told myself that I’d leave and come back another day. Easy enough for me. That’s what my brain thought, but my body didn’t move. I wasn’t ‘ready’ to leave, and it didn’t feel right. I could still hear this family’s activity and whispered discussion in the background of my thoughts, and that’s when it came to me to stay. Stay and listen. Though I couldn’t ignore what was happening around me, I could still take this opportunity to listen through the noise.

It’s very much a challenge to listen through the noises of life. Work, family, finances, news, health—they can all interrupt our spirit and get in the way. We welcome and make room for quiet times of prayer and reflection which are vital and quite life-giving. But what about the noisy times? When we are struggling with a family situation? When the traffic is stopped, and we are already running late? When there are only three lanes open at the grocery store and they’re all long?

I know I’ve allowed these noisy disruptions to interfere with the joy and peace I seek, instead of praying my way through them. But these situations, these moments – though frustrating and discouraging – can be opportunities for us to really listen. Listen through the noises of life that try to take up space in our hearts. With our faith and prayer as filters, may we listen through the many noises we encounter, so our hearts can be open, focused, and ready to receive His grace.