Plugging into the bigger picture

In this morning’s meditation from The Word among Us, April 2-May 31, 2012, we are reminded to focus on the bigger picture, namely that God is with us until the end of time, that God dwells within us and is nearer to us  and more conscious than we are  of who we are, what we are doing, what we are thinking, what is blocking us from realizing our potential and doing the good we are called to do and what needs to change in us to bring us into harmony with the will of God.  Jesus prays for us, as noted in today’s Gospel, John 17: 20-26, saying to His Father:  “….may all be one as you, Father, are in me and I in you,…. and that the love with which you loved me may be in them and I in them.”  It is so easy to get stuck in negativism, in brewing upon that which seems wrong in our lives and in the lives of others, in the life of the Church, in our families, in our religious communities that we lose sight of the big picture! 

I began my prayer this morning with a list of complaints, judging myself harshly for a mistake made yesterday. Any wonder, then,  that I felt depressed, discouraged, and out of sorts!   Those negative feelings flow from my negative way of thinking and a negative view of my reality. If I change the way I am thinking, I will change the way I am feeling.  Feelings are energy in motion.  To move lightly, lovingly, confidently through this day, I need to be fueled by positive thinking, by believing, for instance, that God is with me, goes before me, loves me into the moment and sends His Spirit to counsel me wisely and caringly and that the Spirit’s power enters into all that which is weighing me down.  It is up to me to “plug into this kind of outlet” that increases my energy and does not have the power to deplete it. God is a God of abundance, not scarcity!