|
The parish priest had been noting the lone youngster for quite some time. He was conspicuous with his restlessness and inquisitive look. One day, the old priest decided to make an attempt to reach through the aloofness of this boy and thought out a way to do so.
He placed a brightly decorated box on top of the tall cupboard in the refectory. And waited.
The youngsters who used to hang about the convent after Sunday mass were soon glancing curiously at the box and exchanging tell-tale whispers. The loner never said anything.
One day, the young boy found himself alone in the room looking up at the box. Quickly, he moved a small table, placed a chair on top of it and reached for the box. Inside he found nothing except a small note, "My friend," it said simply, "since you have taken all the trouble to reach for this box to look inside, then that indicates that you are a person who's looking for something. Maybe, something to fill your life. Well, my friend, you have found what you are looking for. That something that can fill your life is Christ. I believe that today you have found Him, or rather, He has found you. Follow Him."
The youngster replace the note in the box, put on the lid again, and climbed down. From that moment his life changed. He started following Christ and never even thought about looking back.
Perhaps, my friend, even you are searching, you may be looking for something ......
You are hooked on traveling and discovering new lands....But in fact, what are you looking for ?
You are obsessed with music, CDs, always looking for new sounds, more exciting, more noise, more modern...Bur actually, what are you looking for ?
Maybe you love adventure, maybe even the occult, anything strange, mysterious and unexplainable....But, really, what are you looking for ?
What are you looking for in that singer, in that film-star ...?
Maybe, it's the TV that you are glued to day after day....or that hobby that seems to fill your life, that old stamp, or that rare butterfly....BUT IN ACTUAL FACT.....WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FOR.....?
You and I are really looking for the same thing, even though we may seem so totally different.
We are looking for peace in our heart, we are looking for JOY...
And the funny thing is that we look all over for it except in the very place where we can find it....deep in our hearts.
Inside yourself you too have a closed, beautiful box, and there you have, truly, a treasure.
Look there.
That box was placed inside of you when you were baptized. It is called the Holy Spirit...the Holy Spirit of God Himself.
But possibly, over the years you have neglected this gift........so many people do. We have been led to believe that once baptized.........No that is not so. Our baptism has to be confirmed day after day through our lives. And we may well lose the gift we had received at baptism simply because we have not bothered to appreciate it....Never bothered to make Him feel welcome in our lives.
Stop now.....and look there. No need to travel, no need to do anything extraordinary.....and you will find.
|
