“Do not be afraid.” These words are often repeated in the
holy Scriptures. In today’s Gospel, Jesus says we should not be afraid because
the Father in Heaven is attentive to every single detail of our lives. Nothing
has escaped the notice of God. If God is attentive to the sparrows, He is even
more attentive to us. That should give us a certain sense of peace and
confidence.
Of course, one reason that this can still be difficult to
believe is that there are many times when it feels like God is quite distant
and inattentive to our lives. It’s important to remember that whenever we have
this feeling, it’s only a feeling or a perception and not reality. Reality is
that God is infinitely more attentive to the details of our lives than we could
ever realize. In fact, He’s far more attentive to us than we are attentive to
ourselves! And not only is He attentive to every detail, He is deeply concerned
about every detail.
So why might it feel like God is distant at times? There
could be many reasons, but we should be certain that there is always a reason.
Maybe we are not listening to Him and not praying as we should and so we are
missing His attentiveness and guidance. Perhaps He has chosen to remain silent
in a matter as a way of drawing us closer to Himself. Sometimes I’ve found His silence was actually
a very clear sign of His presence and His will.
Regardless of how we may feel at times we must be certain of
the truth of Jesus’ words. “You are worth more than many sparrows.” God has
counted the hairs on our heads, even the gray hairs and the ones we have
lost! Every part of our life is fully
present to Him. We need to allow these truths to give us consolation and hope
knowing that this attentive God is also a God of perfect love and mercy and
will provide for us all that we need in life.
I’d like to offer this prayer today: Lord, I know You love me and are aware of
every feeling, thought and experience I have in life. You are aware of every problem
and concern I have. Help me to continually turn to You in all things knowing of
Your perfect love and guidance. Jesus, I trust in You. Amen
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