My younger brother introduced this spiritual song to me last year, and I remember the feeling of how the tune gave off a romantic vibe. That’s exactly what my relationship with GOD has been this past year: a love affair.
There are a lot of times I am filled with tumult and confusion as to what GOD has planned for me. Many times in adoration, I cry when I look at the Eucharist placed on the altar, and I am often filled with abundant tears. It’s an intense spiritual experience as I am consoled in the presence of the holy spirit. As much as we crave this kind of love and respect from God, he craves that same amount of love and respect from us in return. During this past holy week, I watched the Passion of the Christ with my youth group at Church. In a particular scene where Jesus is on the cross on Calvary Hill or known as Golgotha, he said, “I thirst.” The soldiers thought Jesus was thirsty and asking for water.” And instead, they give him sour wine that is mixed gall which gives it a bitter taste. I think this can be taken more as a metaphor when Jesus says, “I thirst”. He’s not necessarily asking for water because he’s thirsty. He is indeed thirsty for our love, compassion, reverence because our thoughts and actions can be bitter towards him. There is another beautiful example in the bible where Jesus says, he is thirsty and asks for water. It is when he meets the Samaritan woman at the well. When Jesus asks her if she can give him water, she is surprised that the man is asking for a drink considering that she is a Samaritan and he is a Jew. In return Jesus responds, “if you ask me, I will tell you where to get living water.” Jesus is aware of the life of this Samaritan woman, and that she leads an immoral and unsatisfying life because her husband abandoned her.
I was raised as a Christian my whole life, but only decided to strive to know who GOD is and continually grow in his presence within the past few years. I’ve been trying to dive into the Bible this year, and it has been reaffirming that he alone plays a significant role in my life. There are many of us who try to fill the void in our lives with external sources, but we fail to realize it’s the Heavenly Father who can fill that void for us. I was indeed one of those people who failed to find my companionship and happiness in only GOD, and instead in the pursuit of happiness based on a relationship status or any unfulfilling luxuries in life. The greatest tragedy is not death, but life without purpose. As I read the bible more often, I came to this harsh realization that GOD is universally large; yet, more simple than we imagine. I came to face this honest revelation as I studied the book of Job, the works of Jesus, his time with his disciplines, and Paul’s letter. This Lent season was honestly humbling to reflect upon my spiritual journey with GOD. I gained spiritual awareness of how much of an active role GOD plays in our life, and I learned to commit myself to salvation keeping in mind why Jesus sacrificed for humanity essentially.
With Abba 