The Hidden Treasure

Ellen Mongan ponders the beauty of the Eucharist and Scripture, two treasures of our Faith.

This year for Mother’s Day, I was blessed to receive flowers, a beach purse, cards, and a family get-together. However, the gift from my son Sean and Kendra will never be forgotten. It was stationary with my name and some pens with Wow Mom and my website, EllenMongan.com.

The real gift was yet to be discovered.

In the evening, when I thanked God for the day and put things away, I reached into the gift bag Sean and Kendra had given me marked "MOM." To my amazement, a card from Sean was hidden in the bag saying, "Mom, I would not be me without you." What a treasure, and to think I almost missed it!

Our faith is much like that hidden treasure, a gift in our hearts that we slowly uncover as we seek Jesus. I thank the Lord daily for my Catholic faith. I still fondly remember my First Communion Day as if it was yesterday. As I approached the communion rail, the priest placed the Host on my tongue, then Jesus came to me and communed with me. My faith was solidified in that moment of grace.

So many Catholics do not understand our belief in the Real Presence. We receive Jesus, body, blood, soul, and divinity. It is a truth of our faith. The words, "I believe Lord, help thou my unbelief," have been prayed by many, a time or two in their life. I was no different. God answered that prayer!

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I was in prayer many years ago and came across a book by Teresa Harper that I had put in my prayer bag to read. As I opened the book, I noticed a note: Yours in Christ, Teresa Harper with the Scripture, John 6:56. I said, “God, I don’t think I even noticed that before.” I received the book from a treasured friend, Sue Secklecki, but it was dated 1996. That was a time in my life when I ran a marathon of raising a house full of children.

Knowing how God works in my life, I decided to look up that Scripture. As I opened my Jerusalem Bible, I read,

“Anyone who does eat my flesh and drink my blood has eternal life, and I shall raise him up on the last day. For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood lives in me and I live in him.” (John 6:54-56)

I was taken aback, as I always am when the Spirit of God moves in my heart. You see, what only God knew is that I had been asking Him to help me. Know without any doubt that the Eucharist is the Real Presence of Our Savior Jesus Christ, Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity. There is a difference between believing and knowing. When I was a child, I believed God was real by faith. Then in my twenties, God began to reveal Himself to me. I knew He was real. “But blessed are your eyes, because they see, and your ears, because they hear” (Matthew 13:16) became a reality in my life. God says in His Word, “When you look for me, you will find me. Yes, when you seek me with all your heart, I will let you find me" (Jeremiah 29:13-14a). I was seeking God.

To my amazement and thankful heart, God used my sister, Teresa, now truly yours in Christ, to encourage me in my faith. What Teresa Harper wrote to me in 1996 was an answer to my prayer on January 26, 2010. The answer I had been seeking with my whole heart came through a friend of God who had gone to glory. God’s timing is always perfect!

Not only is Our Savior Jesus Christ alive in the bread and wine, but also in His Word. Treasure the words He says to you and journal them. We serve a living God. Do not be afraid to ask your Father questions. He has the answers.

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Our faith is much like a hidden treasure, a gift in our hearts that we slowly uncover as we seek Jesus. #catholicmom

God reveals His truth to His people. Each time you receive the Eucharist, remember the first day you received Jesus and communed with Him alone. Be careful not to miss the hidden treasure. Receive the Eucharist often with reverence and thanksgiving. Hidden within that Host is the Lord Jesus, ready to be received into your heart. Will you commune with Him? Will you tell the World? That is just what I’m going to do. What about you?

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