Are You Too Familiar With Jesus To Love Jesus?
I love hearing stories of conversion. They remind me of the time when I first realized how much Jesus loves me. They bring me back to that time when I felt so close to Him, and every moment seems to be filled with the sweetness of His presence.
Hearing conversion stories from people is like getting to know Jesus all over again, reigniting my faith and helping me to be more fervent in prayer.
The truth is that there are times when I become too complacent with my faith that I become lukewarm, something very dangerous when it comes to the spiritual life. It is that season when you think you already know so much about Him that there is nothing more to discover from day to day.
Our minds can also be busy. We may neglect prayer time, and thus, the opportunity to talk to Jesus and strengthen our relationship with Him.
This is true even if our work consists mainly about spreading the Good News of His salvation. We may write stories about Him and speak to people about our knowledge of the catechism. But along the way, we may become all too familiar with everything that it becomes a routine instead of something filled with meaning and an authentic expression of our relationship with God.
Even our religious devotions can be empty, doing them merely out of habit or obligation. When we pray the rosary, do we still contemplate about the true events in the life of Jesus within the mysteries that we pray? Whenever we see statues of Jesus, do they still remind us of who He truly is?
It is like having an old friend you have become too familiar with through the years. At one point, you may have become too busy to spend time with him. You just know that he is there and somehow, you take for granted of his friendship.
Then one day, a new person comes along and becomes acquainted with your friend. This person then tells you how glad she is that she has discovered such a person like him, describing all the qualities that make her thankful for getting to know him. And from her eyes, you realize how much you have been neglecting him all along, forgetting about all the things that you should have been thankful for.
Sometimes, what we need is simply a fresh encounter with Jesus to reignite our faith again. We need to see Him in a whole new light so that He becomes real again, not a mere statue we see every day, or a mere character in the Bible stories that we tell.
We have to spend more time with Jesus in prayer so that we can continue to know Him more. Talk to Him today. And rediscover the One who is most deserving of your love!
“God is an ocean, a fire, a living fountain…That is the essence of prayer: this contact with a living God, a God who reacts, not like a simple inanimate being but like a living person, with a thrill of joy, with the gift of Himself.” — Where The Spirit Breathes
“Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known.” - Jeremiah 33:3 (NRSVCE)
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