February

     You are never alone!!

     At the conclusion of my college studies, I completed an administrative internship at a large Catholic hospital. It was a great experience!! However, of all the things I learned during that internship, the most memorable was a story about their priest chaplain, who had served there for at least 40 years. In the course of conversation on one of the nursing units, the employees started talking about their experiences of this priest, including the following story. One night around 3:00am, one of their patients took an unexpected turn for the worse and his hour was fast approaching. As the nurses worked to make him comfortable during his last moments, the priest chaplain turned the corner and entered the room. He prayed with the patient and the staff, administered Last Rites, and remained with the patient in those last moments of his journey from this life to the next.

     No one had called for him. There had been no previous indication that this patient would need a priest in such a sudden manner. But there in the middle of the night, he appeared when he was most needed by this soul. That image is one that sticks with me. Do we realize that in the nights of our own lives, there is Another who is there for us, who shows up even if unbeckoned, even if unseen?

     Reminds me of several images God has given us in the Bible:

     God walked in the garden with Adam and Eve in the cool of the day. (Genesis 3:8) Jesus walked with the two disciples on the way to Emmaus, helping them understand the awful experience of the crucifixion. They didn’t know it was Him until He broke bread with them. (Luke 24)

   God sent an angel to accompany three youths who refused to worship a false god when they were thrown into a fiery furnace to shield them from harm. (Daniel 3)

     There is Another who is there for us. May He walk into the places of our hearts that need Him most. May He surprise us with His perfect timing. May we trust that He will always be there for us!

     I pray and trust that God walks the halls of the Mother of Good Counsel Home, giving peace to our residents and strength to our Mission Partners!!

In His Merciful Heart,

Sister M. Anselma, FSGM

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