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Trust in the Lord

Tether yourself to God as your guide

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AckermanGenerally speaking, I am not much of an outdoorsman, but a young adult group convinced me to go rock climbing with them at one of our state parks. Rock climbing is incredibly difficult if you have never tried it. It uses muscles that you did not know you even had, and they become sore for days afterward. Mostly though, rock climbing is an exercise in trust. There is a guide, an expert, who demonstrates what to do and provides the proper equipment. Beyond that, it is up to the amateurs to which you are tethered to get you to the final destination. Admittedly, we were not climbing Mount Everest, but it certainly felt like it. At first, I started strong and actually had a fleeting idea of leading a climb myself. Reality soon set in though, and at a certain point I froze.

“You have to reach for the ledge and let go of your current hold!” I remember the guide yelling at me.

“I cannot see it!” I replied.

“You have to trust. Let go!” That was his response.

This column, obviously, is proof that I made it, but I have not forgotten those words. As shepherds and men of faith, we often have to let go. Proverbs 3:5 reminds us, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, / on your own intelligence do not rely.” In theory, that sounds spectacular, but in practice, that task is a lifelong endeavor.

If you ever wonder if you have trouble letting go, rummage through your closet. I had a relative who frequently wore a T-shirt that he bought on vacation 38 years prior. The shirt faded sometime during the Clinton administration, was eaten by moths around the neck, and looked as though the stretched-out fabric was hanging on for dear life. However, he would not get rid of it, because it held too much sentimental value. Recently, thanks be to God, it fell apart in the washing machine, or he might have brought it into another decade!

Our spiritual lives are sometimes reminiscent in that we allow grudges, hurts, anger and resentments to fester and take hold of our hearts. Pride will often rear its ugly head and stubbornly forbid us from moving forward, from letting go and letting God be our guide.

St. John Bosco summed this up well: “Be brave and try to detach your heart from worldly things. Do your utmost to banish darkness from your mind and come to understand what true selfless piety is.”

I have often marveled at stories of the saints who struggled to let go of their pride, anger and other passions. In particular, I enjoy the story of St. Ignatius of Loyola, who once encountered a man on a journey who disagreed with him about the perpetual virginity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. St. Ignatius was so angry from this encounter that he decided he was going to follow the man and slay him in his zeal for God. The Lord intervened, and mercifully Ignatius did not succumb to his desire, but it gave him the opportunity to reflect on the need to surrender and let go. We may not find ourselves exactly in the situation of plotting to execute someone (God forbid), but we most certainly have had to curb our whims and passions. It is truly an exercise to believe that God will see things through in his time, not ours — we merely have to get out of the way.

Pope St. John XXIII, known for his candor and humor, used to pray before the Blessed Sacrament each night before retiring. He would pour out his troubles and worries, his joys and his sorrows, and then would simply say, “It’s your Church; I’m going to bed!” He understood perfectly well that God is the one in charge, and that we have to trust.

My small piece of God’s kingdom is not as dependent on me as my ego may like, and that is wonderful. I have gladly climbed my last rock formation but learned something valuable in the process. Success is largely dependent upon whom you find yourself tethered. If you have a good guide, then there is no need to fear. God will accomplish the victory; we merely need to let go. 

FATHER MICHAEL ACKERMAN is the pastor at Resurrection Parish, Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, and chaplain at Seton LaSalle Catholic High School in Pittsburgh.

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