This is a great time of the year to check our hearts’ preparedness and our minds’ willingness to conform to God’s will for us. I often find that my mind is willing, yet I know I can be hardheaded and lacking in docility and humility.

Being hard-headed is nothing new. During Exodus, God asked Moses to guide the Hebrews out of Egypt. God was providing his people with freedom after many years of slavery, and we could assume the Hebrews would be trusting and grateful after all the wonders they saw, but they were not, for they focused more on what they perceived as lacking.

“Why have you brought us up from Egypt to die in this desert, where there is no food or water? We are disgusted with this wretched food!” (Numbers 21:4-5)

Can we see how the Hebrews came to feel this way? We do the same thing often enough. Have we not grown so comfortable in our lives that we much rather be slaves to our lifestyles and needs than free in the loving will of God?

God is calling us to change. He is calling us to docility and to conform to his will for us. He is calling us to humbly prepare for and accept what He is planning for us. This can be scary and uncomfortable, but just like the Hebrews in the desert, if we become humble and docile, trusting in his loving will for us, he will lead us to that land of milk and honey.

In the Eucharist, Christ calls us ever closer to himself. Today, he asks us to trust him in that humble piece of bread and in that unassuming cup of wine. May we recognize him! May we trust in his love for us.

Let us pray:

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” Amen. (Proverbs 3:5-6).