Not long ago, I was stuck in traffic, driving my niece and nephew around, when they began getting antsy. I can recall vividly having my “patience worn out by the journey,” just like the Israelites. It is human to get tired along the journey, especially in stressful and confusing situations. Though, how we respond in those situations is up to us. God gives so abundantly in our times of need, yet sometimes it can be hard for us to receive the graces God desires to give us, just like the Israelites.
Today’s reading from Numbers is evidence of, not only God’s abundant generosity, but also God’s abundant mercy. We will mess up again, we will lose our patience, it’s inevitable. Yet, this time of Lent isn’t about beating ourselves up for messing up, but rather for recognizing where I veered off course, and then asking God to help me get back on track.
Where might I have veered off course from Christ this past week? How might God be inviting me back on track?
—Marcos Gonzales, a Jesuit scholastic of the California province, is completing his masters of social work at Loyola University Chicago and interning with the Cook County Juvenile Probation Department.