Journeying to Grace

As I left the running and walking track in my neighborhood recreation center, I was pleased with my exercise session. If I counted my laps correctly, I met the goal I set for how long it would take me. Though the accomplishment was encouraging, I was ready to go home. That’s when my positivity took a turn. My belongings were in a locker secured with the combination lock I use often, so I know the numbers well. My first attempt did not open the lock. I assumed I barely missed one of the three numbers, so I tried again and again and again. After 10 attempts, I stopped counting. Frustrated, tired, and annoyed at how long this simple task was taking, I stepped back, glared at the lock, and asked, ‘Why isn’t this working?’

I’m quite sure I’ve asked that same question many times when dealing with more serious situations – when plans I’ve formed, goals I’ve set, or choices I’ve made don’t produce the results I was expecting and counting on – when I believe I’ve been prayerfully doing everything I’m supposed to be doing, but my efforts aren’t fruitful. If I ask the question in these challenging times, I need to be willing to answer it honestly.

When we ask why our plans or choices aren’t working as we hoped, could it be because we’re trying to make things happen on our own? Are we trying to be in control because we believe we know what’s best? In faith, we know better, but in the busyness of our lives and in our desires to be successful and content, we can get caught up and overlook where God is working, where He may be leading us, and what He might be showing us. So, when we wonder ‘why isn’t this working,’ let us also prayerfully ponder: Have we invited God to accompany us? Have we made room in our hearts for His voice to be heard? In patient trust, are we open to His will for us even if it doesn’t match our plans?

‘And we know that in all things, God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose’. (Rom 8:28) This familiar verse is a renewed invitation to release our control and fully rely on the Lord even when we’re anxious; it is a reminder that God is actively working in our lives even when we don’t see it; it is a promise that He knows what is best for us even if it is unexpected. In a homily on healing last year, Pope Leo XIV shared that God does not leave a story (our story) midway. Strengthened by this comforting image of our Father’s love, let us pray for the grace of trust in what the Lord has planned for us. ‘For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance as our way of life.’ (Eph 2:10)