An inspired moment

We've had a couple newer members of our prayer group who have been seeking prayer after the meeting fairly consistently. In both cases, they have been dealing with a struggle that it would be inappropriate for me to divulge, in the unlikely case that someone from the group should ever read these pages. But I think it's okay for me to share here something of what I felt led to share with them after praying last night, as it relates more broadly.

We often lament the lack of piety that we seem to observe in others who approach the Eucharistic table distractedly. I notice the same thing in myself as I cast a judgment at someone I know well who reads the bulletin during the homily: we are quick to assume an attitude of superiority over others, and it is good for us to be reminded that we have earned neither our place at the table nor the gifts that make us the unique person God has created us to be. We do ourselves a disservice when we disdain others, when we fail to recognize and treasure God's spark within them. But that isn't the point of this observation.

Rather: God's grace is at work through the Sacraments even when we who participate in them are not fully aware and appropriately appreciative - as if we could really be either of these things, since we will not know the full import of the gifts we are given until we have passed through the veil. This is true of every Sacrament, beginning with the baptism of an unaware infant. The grace poured out always transcends the awareness of the participant.

This is true of our marriages, as well, whether they are mostly solid or feel as if they are on shaky ground. As we continue to participate in the Sacrament in which God has called us to our primary vocation, His grace continues to be at work, including when we struggle to perceive it - or even to believe in it without perceiving. As with every other Sacrament in which we partake, our increased awareness of this truth increases its efficacy in our lives. It strengthens us and helps us grow more as we more fully give ourselves to Christ within it.