May the measure of your living be love.
If we want things to get better, we must know where we are.
We want many things to get ‘better’. But do we truly take inventory of where we are? If we do not, how can we know if we got better? And normally, taking inventory is exactly how we determine what it is that we need to do to make things better. The elephant in the room becomes obvious, if we never noticed it before.
Now let me rephrase the title. “If we want to go to Heaven, we must know where we are.” If we do not desire eternal happiness, which is what Heaven provides us, then we really are not looking for good things in our life. In truth, we have bigger issues. If we desire eternal happiness, then we must know where we are in order to determine how to get there.
It would be negligent of us to just expect Heaven after we die. Jesus never spoke of Heaven in such a way. He called it “the narrow gate”. – [Matthew 7:13] Surely that does not imply we get there without trying. In fact in the same passage, Jesus talks about the wide gate “that leads to destruction.”
Interestingly enough, Jesus does not seem to indicate that Heaven is hard to attain. When He speaks of it, as in the “narrow gate”, it seems to indicate it must be searched for. He does not say it’s difficult to enter the narrow gate. He is talking about finding it, as in, we need to search for it or risk wandering ourselves into Hell without knowing it.
So, let’s look at where we are in our journey to Heaven. We all have a unique path, since we are all unique. There will always be difficulties as with any journey, but the goal of an endless life surrounded by love sure sounds like eternal happiness. You and I just need to take some time to reflect on where we are in that journey. It does not need to be much time, since if we ask God for assistance in our journey to Heaven, He will more than oblige, since He desires us to spend eternity with Him in Heaven more than we can comprehend.
Jesus, help us to know ourselves and where we are in our journey to You that we may grow closer to You for eternity.
About the Author
I am an adopted son of God through baptism, though still a great sinner. God has blessed me with a wonderful wife and 11 lovely children, 3 of which have gone to Heaven before their birth.
I love the Rosary and started sharing little Catholic reflections with others. My little reflections have helped deepen my faith and I hope they can help others as well. Though not always fully inspired by the Holy Spirit, I enjoy when He takes over and seeing what direction He takes the reflection.
Please say a prayer for me and I will continue to pray for all who read my little reflections, especially for them to be read as the Holy Spirit intends. St. Maximilian Kolbe, pray for the success of my little reflections and for all of Catholic365 and its readers.
