Feast of St. Andrew, Apostle
One spiritual author wrote, “To accept God’s call and to live as one of the Lord’s intimate friends is the greatest grace a person can receive in this life.” We are not just living out our time on this earth trying to pass time only in anticipation of heaven. Rather, the gifts God bestows on us allow us to come to know Him even now. The Gospel is captured in only a few short lines Jesus’ call to two pairs of brothers. Like any call or vocation story, we know that not all is recorded here, but that there were many mysterious inner workings of grace on the hearts of these Apostles.
Before Andrew and Peter could respond to leaving their nets and coming after Jesus, they first had to, in some way, welcome God’s love in their hearts. Andrew had to have known that to accept God’s call wasn’t just a matter of following Jesus around, but it also implied an invitation to be the Lord’s intimate friend. This sentiment harmonizes well with how St. Teresa of Avila would describe prayer: “For mental prayer in my opinion is nothing else than an intimate sharing between friends; it means taking time frequently to be alone with Him who we know loves us.”
Sometimes our following of the Lord can be rather ‘mechanical,’ and we forget the dimensions of divine intimacy and divine friendship. When you feel the Lord’s prompting in your heart, take the time to sit with it and come to know the Lord in silence. The invitation is to come to know you and make Himself known. It’s a privilege to be called a ‘friend of God.’
Reflection by Fr. Paul Sheller, OSB
Posted in Articles for Advent, Articles for Advent, Daily Reflections