My Summons by Maureen Locher

Oftentimes I sing a song at Mass that hits right on the mark. I think – Wow, if I could only keep this feeling in my heart, these thoughts in the forefront of my mind as I make my daily round. But then Mass is ended, I close my hymnal, and deposit it in its little wooden rack on the church pew, and go in peace…

…to love and to serve the Lord. And the complications ensue. Today, however, I swiped a book. I’ll return it, don’t worry.

"Will you come and follow Me if I but call your name?" I want to. I think I mostly do.

"Will you leave yourself behind if I but call your name?" Will I leave myself behind COMPLETELY, not "mostly"? Hmmm…will I? That’s really hard.

Will you "admit to what I mean in you and you in Me?" Does everyone I meet know just how much God means to me? Everybody? My kids, my spouse, my friends, my strangers?

"Will you love the ‘you’ you hide if I but call your name? Will you quell the fear inside and never be the same?" Much of me is hidden. Shouting from the rooftops declaring God’s goodness and mercy hasn’t been my style. But scribbling my thoughts reaches more than not scribbling. Is that enough? Probably not. As Emeril would say, I’ve got to "kick it up a notch." Can I quell the fear inside to do so?

"Will you use the faith you’ve found to reshape the world around, through My sight and touch and sound in you and you in Me?" Yes, I will. It’s time.

*Special thanks to John L. Bell for these inspiring words in his song, "The Summons," in the Gather hymnal by GIA Publications, Inc.


Copyright 2009 Maureen Locher