Some years ago– not long after I had returned to Albuquerque after my short time in Chicago post divorce– I had a conversation with one of the priests at my church. I asked him about something he had said in one of his homilies, that sometimes God asks us to give up something for something greater.
I explained that in my divorce, I had given up the house in Albuquerque (we had a second home in my hometown in the Chicago area so that’s where I moved to) which also meant I gave up the swimming pool. I knew one day I would have a pool again, but I hated not having the instance access to the water that brought me so much peace and happiness.
When I had the opportunity to return, I told Fr. Anthony, I knew I wouldn’t give up the pool again.
So how could God ask me to give up the pool again? I asked him.
He thought for a moment and then asked me, “What if God asked you to give up your pool for, say, the ocean?”
What he meant was that when we are asked to give something up, it means that there is something greater for us out there.
I know, as I write this, that many people are in pain and doubting me. If something were to happen to me, I would doubt this statement, too.
At first.
But I have learned that when I reflect back on the road there is always something greater for us when we’ve been asked to give something up. The key is that we choose to make the most of our lives here on this earth, to learn as much as we can, and to be more than we presently are. Traveling that road isn’t an easy one, however, it’s the most rewarding one.
We must be willing to give up something for an unknown behind a door we haven’t opened. And believe. And trust. And know that when we reflect back on the road, we’ll not just understand it, but be grateful for it.