“I turn to you, Lord, in times of trouble, and you fill me with the joy of salvation” (from responsorial psalm, Psalm 32).

There have been times when I have been really tired. When I was in my last semester of student teaching in college, I would teach all day and then work second shift in the nursing home. There were times while going through seminary for the permanent deaconate, working full-time, working on my three classes and being present for JoAnn, Jack, and Christy.

There have certainly been times of trouble, the biggest when receiving JoAnn’s diagnosis of pancreatic cancer and then accompanying her through her journey through to the end of this life and then the following two years of wondering how to begin again.

Even when life goes well, life can be hard. Challenges, trouble, and tribulations arise. I have fared the best, time and again, when I remember to turn to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Over the past year, Mary and James the Apostle have been powerful intercessors and supporters in my corner as well.

With each challenge, I seek to focus on Jesus more than the issue at hand. Even something as simple as when I am feeling tired. Instead of saying, even silently, how tired I feel, I do my best to resist and instead ask Jesus to give me strength and the discernment when it is also time to rest, and get some sleep.

Each time I reach out for their help, more and more I experience the “joy of salvation” that the psalmist presents in today’s responsorial psalm. No matter what we are facing, we are not facing it alone. Jesus, his Father, and the Holy Spirit are with us. When we remember to place our hope and trust in them, the finite limitations and fallen nature of this world dims compared to their love for us who as Jesus said that we are “worth more than many sparrows.” We don’t have to be defined by our emotions or external circumstances. Instead let us be defined by God’s love for us.

We are precious children in God’s eyes. Trust in him and his love. Jesus loves, will guide, support, protect, heal, and empower us. Let us offer him our thanks and ask him to help us with any of our troubles or challenges. My prayer is that you too may feel and experience his joy, love, and peace welling up within you today!

Photo: Evening Rosary walk, St. Vincent De Paul Regional Seminary, Boynton Beach, FL.

Link for the Mass readings for Friday, October 20, 2023