New Direction

One of the things I find fascinating is how other people interpret what they read, what others say, or what others do. I remember years ago when I attended a work conference we had breakout sessions where we were paired with other employees and did certain team building, empowerment type activities. One of the activities was very simple. We were given a word, and were told to write down what came to mind when hearing that word. The word that was spoken aloud was “bear.” We all had a different interpretations of this word. Grizzly, teddy, Winnie the Pooh, woods, and even naked came to mind for some. After all, we didn’t know the spelling so one could assume it was “bare” like not being clothed. How interesting I thought. We all work for the same company, we all have been at the same conference but some of us thought of bear in a childlike way, some in a threatening way and some in a completely different way of being stripped.

This exercise made me realize that without clear definition, one can assume a plethora of directions of what you are trying to communicate if not done effectively and clearly. I feel this way a lot when I read the bible. I assume or try to take literal of what I’m reading when in fact some of it is a suggestion. Simply, we take a lot of what we read out of context. I am always intrigued when I read ahead on Sundays and then learn during the homily that my interpretation was nothing like how our priest interpreted the scripture. As you can see none of the answers in the exercise were incorrect, but all correct interpretations of the word that was heard.

As I read the Gospel of Matthew this month I think of how scripture is written. For example, Matthew 6:19-21 reads, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and decay destroy, and thieves break in and steal. But store up treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor decay destroys, nor thieves break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.” I don’t think this verse is literally meaning “don’t worry about saving money on earth because it is not needed in heaven.” In reality, we do need to be responsible about our finances and I know God would want that for us. I do think it means not literal treasures like gold and money, but more our love for God. The end goal is to get to heaven and choosing wealth, greed, etc is not the path we need to be taking. Do we miss church because we are working? Do we choose to do something God wouldn’t approve of? Are we making money is a godly way? Do we work for a company that supports abortion or the making of a product that God wouldn’t like?

It’s time to go a new direction in our lives. Or at the very least, evaluate the direction we are currently heading. I think our current state of happiness plays a factor in this. I would have never thought of it that way until I heard a priest speak on the will of God and our happiness. He said “Happiness is doing God’s will.” Basically meaning, your happiness, your current course in life is dependent on the will of God. Are you doing the will He has set out for you? Or have you pushed that to the side to continue to do your own thing? If you are unhappy, sad, maybe depressed, are those emotions stemming from doing everything God has willed for you? Sit back and pray. Ask God, “what is your will for me? what am I supposed to be doing with my life?” If you take time to pray about this and listen I am positive your happiness will come. I used the example on my personal Facebook page of the old saying “trying to fit a square peg into a round hole.” No matter how many times we try to force it, the reality is that the peg won’t fit. Now we could find a different hole, but the round hole is already there and its something we are used to, comfortable with. We could even sand or saw the peg to make it smaller and fit in the hole, but that would require work and effort. At the end of the day, God doesn’t want the peg to fit in the hole. It wasn’t the will that was intended. Some of us continue to try to make it work because it is familiar, normal, effortless territory. Is that doing His will?

I’ll leave you with this thought: If you were to type “heaven” into your GPS, would it give you a “recalculating” or “rerouting” message? Or are you already going in the correct direction?

Hugs and loves,

Ali

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, on your own intelligence do not rely; In all your ways be mindful of him, and he will make straight your paths.” Proverbs 3: 5-6