ARE YOUR GOALS IN LIFE REALISTIC?

ARE YOUR GOALS IN LIFE REALISTIC?

By Eileen Renders                                          October 18, 2023

   Regardless of where we are in life, most people have goals, be they immediate, temporary, or long-range plans, we look to the future. Life is sort of broken up into as we like to say, stages, or stepping stones. As we start out in life, we are supported and learn how to walk, talk, and communicate. Even children at some point, begin a social life through playtime.

   The next stepping stone, if you will, is usually off to School where more learning is required, more socializing, and a bit of responsibility, such as homework and so on.

   But let us move forward a bit and consider how, as adults, we determine whether we are more inclined to follow a religious life, such as becoming a nun, a priest, a deacon, or perhaps marry, and carry on the style of life we became accustomed to as a child, sort of repeating history. As a married adult, our goals may be to purchase a home, raise children and save for their future College education, and teach our children the value of a dollar. The cost of living is always becoming costlier, interest rates climb and inflation sets in.

   Where I am going with this scenario is to remark on how we often grow and mature. First things first, we need an education and earning power. Securing our future.

   Oh how easy it is for most of us to forget that our future here on earth is temporary. Therefore, as well-meaning parents, we place the most emphasis on education and how it prepares us for a life with a substantial and reliable income.

Those individuals however, who were called by God to teach and support our children through a dedicated life as that of a priest, or nun, spend their lives in vows of poverty and chastity and focus on teaching us about our permanent home with God, our eternal life, which is not to be spent here on earth.

   The bottom line, or where I am going with this story is to remind us all that just as it is healthy to lead a balanced life of work, rest, and other healthy interests. A “balanced” healthy life requires also, that one looks at their life as one that is intellectual, emotional, and spiritual.

   It is definitely the last word you just read “spiritual” which many of us may need to contemplate. Perhaps, this is exactly why many of us, fear death and do not even wish to talk about it, let alone accept it as part of life.

   Therefore, I am reminded that fear is the opposite of trust. In trusting in God more, we will come to accept that our life on earth is in fact, terminal. By spending more time in contemplation with Christ, we begin to feel his love, and trusting in Him is gentle and easy.