What does it mean to belong to Christ? For St. Therese of Lisieux it meant that every task she was given was an opportunity to serve God, no matter how small or insignificant it seemed.
St. Therese felt that people lived too much in fear of God’s judgment and not enough in recognition of God’s love. She knew that God shows his love for us through mercy and forgiveness. She also knew she could not be perfect in serving the Lord. So she approached God as a child approaches a parent, with open arms and complete trust.
The “Little Way” of St. Therese is a way of consecrating our most mundane and ordinary tasks to God, whether it is washing clothes or opening a door for another. It means making small interior sacrifices that only God can see. It sounds simple, but requires a commitment to serving God by serving all the people we meet in our everyday lives with equal love.
Every action of ours, great and small, will be taken into account. If all we do is offer a cup of water, in Christ’s name, to one who thirsts, it will be remembered, and we will not lose our reward.
Let us live our lives confident of God’s love for us by showing our love for Him and our neighbor in everything we do. Each day is an opportunity to make a difference in someone’s life if we choose to live as a people who belong to Christ.
Pax Vobiscum
26th Sunday in Ordinary Time