HOME > Prayers > Meditations > 2010 October
Vocation Meditation -
October 17, 2010
Then Jesus told them a parable about their need to pray always and not to lose heart.
He said, ‘In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor had respect for people. In that city there was a widow who kept coming to him and saying, “Grant me justice against my opponent.” For a while he refused; but later he said to himself, “Though I have no fear of God and no respect for anyone, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will grant her justice, so that she may not wear me out by continually coming.
And the Lord said, ‘Listen to what the unjust judge says. And will not God grant justice to his chosen ones who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long in helping them? I tell you, he will quickly grant justice to them. And yet, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?’
How do we know we are doing what God wants us to do?
Many people ask themselves this question, especially when they are entering adulthood or are living as young adults.
And it is not uncommon to hear young people say they do not understand what God wants for them, they cannot tell His desire for their lives.
But how have they prayed? How much time have they spent in silence before the Lord asking for illumination? Have they acted as did the widow?
This woman did not stop in her appeals for justice. We, too, need "badger and harass" the Lord with our requests for understanding in how He wants us to spend ourselves for the Kingdom. Not because God can be bullied into granting us something we think we need but because the Lord strongly desires that we know Him and love Him and trust Him... the result of constant and total prayer.
Moreover, our spirit of prayer needs to be hers. The widow accosted the judge because he was her only form of recourse. She had no husband to advocate for her, probably no family either. Realizing she had nothing else, she threw herself at his mercy. Our prayer also needs to be one of total reliance. As a child of God we must entrust ourselves to God if we are to learn and live according to His desires.
Vocation Challenge
Am I prepared to harass God to find out what He wants for my life, setting aside time to listen to Him speak into my heart His plan for my life?
Dear Lord,
You have created us for a purpose that is, at first, known to You alone. Give us the grace to desire to speak with You each day in prayer so that, through the same gift of perseverance that You granted to the widow, we, too, will come to learn how we may serve You with our lives.
For the full Gospel reading for this Sunday, visit the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops site.