Conflicted and Convicted

The great Aloysius Gonzaga made perfect the example of seeking God's kingdom by giving up a life of wealth to serve God.  His path of following God's call, being selfless, and humbling himself provide for us a path to holiness.  I ponder this frequently as I engage in the daily battle of seeking God's kingdom.  Today's Gospel reading from Matthew is quite straightforward "You cannot serve God and mammon."

My obsession with what the day will provide in the form of food, worldly pleasure, and self-centeredness only leads to despair.  Thus I stand convicted before the Lord as he states "Do not worry about tomorrow as tomorrow will take care of itself.  I know that in God's infinite goodness and in his word the answer there lies as the heavenly Father knows what I need, but my frail humanity pulls me into the temporal world when I allow myself to wander. All worldly desires are short lived as evidenced by society today. There is a constant need to fill and refill the unquenchable thirst of busyness, connectivity, and pleasure. Social media, coffee (nothing against Starbucks and coffee drinkers), television shows, and hedonism are prime examples of this.

Thus pondering the words of Saint Aloysius when he states in his third principle of resorting to acts of humility and self-contempt when confronted by the temptations by the devil, I seek God.  Lord Jesus Christ, Son of everliving God, have mercy on me a sinner.