I have gotten a little farther along on the icon of Our Lady of Tenderness. Yesterday’s quiet rainy afternoon helped. My third year of theology studies I really wrestled with the possibility of the monastic life. I don’t doubt my vocation as a diocesan priest but the idea of solitude in God remains very compelling for me. Of course the fact that the semester is beginning in just a couple of days now and things will once again be humming at the Catholic Center may also have something to do with these thoughts…

One of my resolutions for the new year is to get my spiritual house in order.  Recently I have had the spiritual intuition that God is asking something new of me.  I must admit that this thought had been weighing me down because I have been thinking solely in terms of something I need to give up or let go of but the other day the insight came to me as I was working on this icon that the “something new” God is asking of me is not another cross to carry but rather just to spend more time with Him in friendship and relationship. 

God wants time with me.  It is a very tender and life-giving invitation. 

I have made a reservation later this month for an overnight “quiet” day at Jubilee House (a retreat center) in Abingdon, VA.  My hope is to make this a monthly commitment.  Please help me by praying that I follow through and am able to keep this commitment. 

It is a beautiful thing when our Lord invites us to come away and spend time with Him.