A Guest Post: A Parable by Thomas Naegele

This is a guest post from Tom Naegele. You can check out his blog by clicking his name. I was very much moved by this post of his below the picture. We will not be happy until God is the center of our lives. Until then, those seemingly pointless tasks of sweeping the floor and cleaning the dishes will seem very insignificant, but if we make God the center at all times and do those tasks for love of Him, well, then, how great will they become then?

There once lived a tiny seed who wished to become a great and beautiful tree. He spent many years trying everything in his power to germinate, sprout, and grow. He worked tirelessly at it every single day of his life, but it was seemingly all to no avail.

Finally, after many years of persevering in hard work, the seed was at last able to bury himself in a bit of soil and begin the germination process. But alas, our poor seed could make it no further. The soil he had found was in a cold and dark environment, and he received none of the essential sunlight and water. Consequently, this poor, miserable seed simply withered away back into the nothingness from which he came. He never achieved his goal of becoming a great and beautiful tree.

Such is the sad story of many a life today.

We set lofty goals for our lives, we work diligently and tirelessly towards those goals, and yet we often fail miserably. Why? It is because we so often attempt to do everything ourselves. We obsess over the idea of becoming something, so we madly seek out soil–any soil–in which we can begin the germination process. We sacrifice everything to have a little success, but we ignore the essential elements of growth.

Sunlight and water are necessary for any life to grow beyond the germination process. Sunlight is the presence of God in our souls, and water is His graces pouring down from Heaven. If we ever wish for any real success in our lives, we must have these two vital elements.

It is possible to find a little, temporary success without the element of God in our lives, but it will only be a fleeting moment. Very soon we will wilt, and we will die. We will go back to the nothingness from which we came. We will have wasted our lives without ever accomplishing anything of value.

But if we would only welcome the ever-burning sun of God into our lives, and then open our souls to receiving His infinite graces, what success we will encounter! What great and beautiful examples of life we shall become. Do this today, dear readers. We must stop trying to become something on our own. We must turn to Him, the source of all life, and ask for His help.

Comments

How Saint Philomena Found me a Husband

By Cara E. Ruegg You often hear it said, “To Saint Philomena, God refuses nothing.” Saint John Vianney was the author of those words. He loved Philomena. Pauline Jaricot, another devotee of Philomena, who was alive during the Cure’s time and who was healed by Philomena herself, came to him one day with relics of this dear saint, and told him, “Have full confidence in this great saint; she will obtain for you all that you ask.” John Vianney claims he felt a love enkindled in his heart for Philomena soon as he got hold of her relics. He often referred to her as his “dear little saint”, going so far as to blame all the miracles wrought through him, on her. In fact, when he was at death’s door and the doctors had given up all hope of his recovery, it was through the intercession of Philomena that he was miraculously cured. (www.philomena.org/vianney.asp) Despite all this, despite the fact so many saints and even popes have praised her to the skies, I never thought

Louis Martin: A Heroic Father and Sufferer of Mental Illness

A Family of Saints: Part Three By Cara E. Ruegg Therese walking with her father -- The discovery of Orion Picture of Therese praying with her father After Zelie Martin’s death, Mme. Guérin, taking to heart Zelie’s dying request, suggested to Louis that he move to Lisieux so as to be closer to her and Zelie’s brother. This would become a new home to the Martin children, and Mme. Guérin another mother. However, Louis Martin, was initially torn at the prospect of moving. His aged mother lived in Alençon and family graves resided there; he also was quite fond of the countryside and many of his close friends and his confessor advised against his moving. Louis turned to his two eldest and said to them, “I am asking your advice, children, because it will be solely on your account that I make this sacrifice, and I would not wish to impose one upon you also.” Both girls assured him they only wanted his happiness, but he figured out their desires, and selflessly p

My Home Water Birth During a Snowstorm

By: Cara E. Ruegg You were four days late and I was anxious for your arrival. My last midwife appointment, I was told I was measuring two weeks ahead; it was implied maybe I had gestational diabetes after all but I had been monitoring my sugars with my glucometer, something I thought far more accurate anyway, and fasting and after meals was still normal even with dessert, so I don’t think it was that. The midwife suggested I consider an ultrasound to check your weight to see if we should do the hospital route. She said she was trained to handle shoulder dystocia even at home but would prefer more hands. I remembered with your brother how inaccurate that last ultrasound was, nearly two pounds off. I also later did research and found maternal outcomes were better when the woman didn’t know her child would be big. It made sense. Fear is the enemy of labour. I was told though if you came before the ultrasound, we’d just go ahead with the home birth, so I was now ready for you to come, wher

C.Ruegg

Search This Blog