He Cares for You

Tami Urcia takes comfort in wisdom from the First Letter of Peter, a reassurance that God brings us strength amid suffering.

Each and every one of us is a complex being made up of not only a body but sometimes a very complicated soul. We all have a past, circumstances that have marked us and caused us to act and react in certain ways. Some of us were deeply loved as children; some of us were unwanted and simply put up with. Some of us were listened to; others were expected to be seen and not heard. Some have been burned in relationships, at former jobs, or in former vocations. Each and every one of us is highly unique and has never experienced exactly what the person next to us has. Even if we grew up in the same household, the way we internalized things was different.

A few months ago, a sad memory resurfaced in my mind. I was in Rome at a grandiose millennial celebration. We were at Mass with the founder of the religious organization I was with at the time. It was a person who was highly respected and revered. At this special Mass, some of my companions were allowed to make the solemn renewal of their promises early. Normally this step was taken after two years, but since it was the year 2000 and we were all together in Italy, it was decided that those who were deemed ready would be allowed to renew early.

Yet there I sat after two and a half years and still not permitted to renew my promises. I remember staring at one of the youngest members of the bunch, just filled with envy and anger, and I couldn’t stop crying. I wept through the whole Mass, wiping my nose on my shirt sleeve since, of course, I didn’t have a single tissue with me. I was a mess.

Little did I know that just a few months later I would be leaving that life after discovering that it wasn’t my vocation. Little did I know that a decade later, that person who was so highly respected and revered was discovered to have been leading a double life and died in shame. Little did I know that two decades later I would have five children and a husband I adore, fulfilled in my new calling as wife and mother.

Click to tweet:
Whenever a difficult memory arises in your mind, try casting it upon the Lord and asking Him to walk through it with you step by step. #catholicmom

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The moral of the story is that while that experience was deeply hurtful, it also forged me into a stronger person who realized that God is my only rock, my only salvation.

The First Letter of Peter sums it up beautifully:

Cast all your worries upon him because he cares for you …The God of all grace who called you to his eternal glory through Christ Jesus will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you after you have suffered a little. (1 Peter 5:7, 10)

Jesus suffered, so we, as His followers, will suffer as well. We are not promised a life without suffering. We all have sad memories. But He does promise to “restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish” us. We are assured that He cares for us. We are invited to cast our worries upon Him.

Whenever a difficult memory arises in your mind, try casting it upon the Lord and asking Him to walk through it with you step by step. Ask Him to help you learn from it and to heal you from it. For He cares for you, every deep and complex aspect of you.