For the past several weeks I have come to realize how amazing adoration is and can be.
Growing up, my parents always encouraged my siblings and I to have a stable and consistent prayer life. They’d bring us to mass every Sunday, would lead us into praying the rosary before we went to bed, and would often bring us to a chapel whenever they could. Unfortunately I did not appreciate these efforts enough or as much as I should have. In fact, I often protested from doing any of these things. Looking back now, I am ashamed that I even felt this towards prayer because of how much I have fallen in love with prayer now and that is all thanks to my weekly #dateswithJesus in adoration.
Every week I now make it a point to go to adoration. It amazes me that its taken me so long to finally have a consistent time with God scheduled in this way but nonetheless, I am happy that I am finally doing it.
If I were describe how I feel before I step into a chapel I would say that I feel joyful. Joyful because I know that I get to spend the next few minutes or hours with the Lord in such an intimate way. In this time, the Lord and I are able to spend time together away from any distractions or from the chaos of the world. As someone who gets distracted easy and has a hard time sitting still, I love how calm ANY chapel is. Whether you go to a small chapel that can sit only a handful of people or in a space that is able to sit hundreds of individuals , the stillness is all the same. It definitely makes my time with God more peaceful.
I love how at home my heart feels whenever I sit in front of the Blessed Sacrament too. It’s as if when I stare at Him, He is staring back at me with eyes full of love and is welcoming me with His arms stretched wide, waiting to give me a hug. I also feel like I can be 100% me and be vulnerable with God as well. This in turn allows me to feel so safe. There are not many places where I am able to feel this way which is why I appreciate the chapel so much. Lastly, I know that I can be fully open with God. That I can have a simple conversation with Him, telling Him how my day was or the struggles I have been going through the past week. Whatever our conversation may be, I am affirmed that God wants nothing more than my presence in the room. He does not demand anything from me or expects me to say much. It’s surely an overwhelming but beautiful experience every time I step into a chapel.
With all this said and done, in some crazy but wonderful way, going to adoration weekly has allowed me to fall in love with God more. Maybe it’s because of the beauty of the chapels or the peace I feel when I’m there in the quiet space, or simply the intimate time I get to spend with God alone. Whatever it may be I can definitely say that adoration has slowly changed my mind on prayer and has calmed my heart so that it can be more in tune with His.
I pray that whomever is reading this, that you go to adoration. Go NOW! Go see for yourself the exact beauty I am talking about. I promise you that will not be disappointed. Please experience the wonders of it all for yourself. It will be a great gift you can give to yourself.
“If we but paused for a moment to consider attentively what takes place in this Sacrament, I am sure that the thought of Christ’s love for us would transform the coldness of our hearts into a fire of love and gratitude.” – St. Angela of Foligno