When it comes to companions, God always provides

When it comes to companions, God always provides

"Even while I was praying and confessing my sins and the sins of my people and desperately pleading with the Lord my God for Jerusalem, his holy mountain, Gabriel, who I had seen in the earlier vision, flew swiftly to me at the time of the evening sacrifice and said to me, 'Daniel, I am here to help you understand God's plans . . . God loves you very much.' " Daniel 9:20-23

Gifts are a wonderful thing, and in the course of a lifetime the myriad gifts we have given and received become too numerous to count.

But sometimes, if we are paying close attention, we may sense a "theme" of sorts running through the gifts we receive at certain times in our lives -- certainly inspired by the generous Spirit of God.

Several months ago a dear friend gave me a medal of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton. Knowing of some particular trials in my life he said with a gentle smile, "This will help you. I think you will relate to her. She was a saint, but first a wife and mother of five children."

Slipping the chain around my neck, I thanked him for his thoughtfulness, though I knew very little about this saint and had never felt a call to pray for her intercession.

Still in the weeks to come I never took the chain off and frequently found myself fingering the small round medal when I became distressed or weary. I wondered what her life had been like and how her faith had sustained her in times of suffering.

Shortly thereafter, one of my closest friends gave me a gift, as well. It was a book entitled Praying with Elizabeth Ann Seton. Along with it was enclosed a short biography of the saint and her spiritual maxims. Now I may not always be quick on the uptake, but I'm not totally dense either. There was a message here. This friend knew nothing about the medal and had never heard me express a desire to learn about this saint, and if there is one thing I have it's many books on praying.

Looking at the cover I was intrigued by something else - the words "Companions for the Journey."

The image conjured up warm thoughts of our oldest friends, John and Rose and their five children, who have not only been our companions for many extraordinary vacations but through the joys and tribulations of life as well.

The book explained that the word companion came from two Latin words, com meaning "with" and panis meaning "bread." I liked the image - someone who nourishes our heart, mind, soul and body.

As I began reading and reflecting on the book, which opened with a wonderful biography about the saint, I began to understand why I had received these two special gifts. Certainly I was grateful that God had provided St. Elizabeth as a new and welcomed companion, and was once again mindful of the wonderful friends who had nourished me so often during some of the most difficult times of my life. I was also reminded of a quote I had recently read about prayer from Evagrius Ponticus, a fourth century monk, disciple and teacher of the ascetic life: "If you pray truly you will feel within yourself a great assurance, and the angels will be your companions." Angels, companions, friends - how nicely they all fit together, and how blessed it is to have them all on the journey.

_____________________________

Mary Morrell, mother of six sons, is the author of Angels in High Top Sneakers from Loyola Press; Things My Father Taught Me, a bi-weekly column that appears in several Catholic newspapers, I'll Walk With God, a monthly newsletter published by the Metuchen Diocesan Office of Religious Education, and Mary is a writer for Real Faith TV, produced by the Diocese of Trenton, Office of Communication.

Contact

Diocese of Metuchen
http://diometuchen.org NJ, US
Mary Morrell - associate director, Office of Religious Education, 732 562-1990

Email

mmorrell@diometuchen.org

Keywords

God

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