Butterfly Effect

I want to touch upon something I spoke of in my previous post, "Growing Pains."  So often we experience hardships as a negative, something to look down upon.  However, it is in our afflictions that we find out just how strong we actually are.  For it is in them that we are able to overcome our biggest difficulty: our "self."  We never really know what we are capable of until our capabilities are put to the test. And as the great ring leader points out, "The greater the struggle, the more glorious the triumph."

Valiantly striving to overcome our personal difficulties will have have a transforming effect on our lives, and perhaps the lives of those around us.  With God's grace, the biggest hardships in life can become the butterfly effect we need to catapult us towards a lifetime of positive growth and change.

However, just like Will in the movie shown above, God can not make us do anything.  He will always give us the love, grace, healing, forgiveness, guidance and support we need, and will never turn his back to us. However, He always defaults to our free will, putting the ball in our court.  It is we who need to make that leap of faith, utilizing the grace that has been freely given.  We can't always wait for perfect timing, sometimes we just have to dare to jump in, losing sight of the shore, focusing on the unchartered possibilities in front of us.  As one of my confessors, Fr. Dominic Scotto once told me, "we may not know what the future holds, but we know Who holds the future." No matter what your circumstances are, always remember, "you are MAGNIFICENT!"