How Does Your (Spiritual) Garden Grow?

• You might be God’s work in progress if you keep closer track of when you had your last haircut than of when you last went to confession.
• You might be God’s work in progress if you sometimes put off prayer time to get other things – “this-world” things – done.
• You might be God’s work in progress if you steadfastly avoid eye contact with the man at the intersection holding a sign that says, “Will work for food. Anything helps.”
• You might be God’s work in progress if you found a $20 bill you didn’t know you had and spent it to treat yourself instead of on a charitable cause.
• You might be God’s work in progress if you sometimes take “me time” or “alone time” instead of volunteering or spending extra time with a family member.
• You might be God’s work in progress if you sometimes slip with an “Oh, my God!” when you are not actually praying.
• You might be God’s work in progress if your language sometimes strays into “sailor” territory or involves a four-letter word that is not “Help!”
• You might be God’s work in progress if the spiritual reading materials you keep meaning to get to are still on top of the bookcase or at the back of your nightstand.
• You might be God’s work in progress if your intentions to pray the Rosary at least weekly, if not daily, sometimes are not met.
• You might be God’s work in progress if going to Mass on Sunday sometimes feels like an obligation, and your thoughts wander far and wide as you are fulfilling it.

Think of it like one of those magazine quizzes. If you answered yes to more than three or four of these items, then Congratulations! You are a work in progress, ready for God’s hand to shape you!

You see, not one of those things (except possibly #6) is actually sinful. All of them are the behaviors common to good Christians who earnestly want to serve God, who believe that Jesus died for the salvation of us humans, and who believe that God created them, loves them, and wants them to enjoy eternity with Him in heaven.

None of these things, by itself, is a sign that we are seriously flawed in our spiritual life. They all, most assuredly, indicate that our spiritual life can improve. And for me, the number of items I can check on that list is in direct proportion to my need to seek spiritual growth – to actively pursue it in as many forms and ways as I possibly can.

The great blessing of this little exercise is the realization that should come when we finish it: God is not done with us. And even more important, and of greater spiritual benefit: He never gives up His quest for us, and He is infinitely patient as He awaits our openness to His grace. He will not be outdone in His will to lead us to a more blessed and holy life in His service. He will not be outdone in the ways that He seeks us or in the opportunities He places before us to grow in His love.

I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that we all are God’s work in progress. When we give thanks for our blessings, let us include our gratitude for His not being done with us and for His refusal to be outdone in the outpouring of His Spirit, His mercy, His guidance, and His love.