This week’s reflection is written by Lauren Witt. Lauren teaches math and science for 6th and 7th grade at Romero Academy at Annunciation in Cincinnati, OH. She is so grateful to still be living with some of her amazing friends from her Fellow community. Lauren served in Cohort 11 also at Romero Academy at Annunciation by as a teacher in Pre-K, 4th, 5th, & 6th Grades, as well as a theology teacher for 5th and 6th Grades.
“What did you go out to the desert to see?”
Jesus asks this question to the disciples of St. John the Baptist who have come to see if He is truly the messiah. These people ventured out to a place of hardship and deprivation and became devoted to a man who wore camel hair and ate only honey and locusts. When you go out to the desert to seek Jesus, even more so, you must be prepared for the uncomfortable and paradoxical.
Going into my Fellow year, I was prepared for sacrifice, yet I was blessed with abundant consolation. I began my first full-time teaching job with the hope that prior experience would help everything to run a bit smoother. The first trimester shattered that expectation with an oftentimes overwhelming and frustrating reality. However, it also brought a challenging but peace-filled recognition that God is providing exactly what I need for the now. Every precious smile, long hug, unforgettable quip, and deep encounter with Love Itself over the past few months is like one of Jesus’ miracles.
But Jesus does not heal and resurrect in every moment; that can’t be all we are searching for when we pursue Him. By meeting Jesus in the desert of our lives, we may more likely discover our Lord calling us to a time of rest, of fasting, of mundanity, or of suffering.
We should recognize that the deepest question in our waiting and preparing is not about what we ourselves are seeking, but rather we must consider how we can submit joyfully to what we receive from the wise and creative God who made and loved us.
