Hidden In Plain Sight

Today I woke up early.  Very early.  We’re talking three-hours-of-sleep early.  I had to attend a religious education workshop at a local church, but a driveway full of snow required a slight adjustment of wake-up time.  The early morning shoveling, however, proved quite invigorating, and I enjoyed a busy but generally alert and comfortable day.  The three hours of sleep had not caught up with me…yet.

At midnight I went to adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, which always proves to be a peaceful time of fulfilling fellowship with God.  After about half an hour, though, I was overcome by an overpowering tiredness that put me to sleep like chloroform, the tolerant sort of sleep that doesn’t mind a bent neck or slouching posture.  I was out like a light.

I was awakened by someone else entering the adoration chapel, but only for a moment.  Soon, I was back asleep.  That’s when I had the dream…

I dreamt of a great crowd of people, which I was a part of, walking in a building, maybe a hallway.  We were all walking to various destinations, perhaps a bit hurried.  There was something we weren’t noticing.

I think I woke up at this point, noted the strange something that we’d all missed in my dream, and went back to sleep.  I started dreaming the same sort of dream.

I became gradually aware that each person in this crowd was going about the business of their own day.  But I was acutely aware this time of our utter failure to notice something big and obvious that was almost hanging right by us.  We were walking right by it, oblivious, simply going about our daily routines.  But there was still something there.

I woke up once more.  This time I was well aware of the riddle of the dream—and, for some unknown reason, intensely interested in discovering what this missing something was.  Still deliriously tired, I decided to dip back into the subconscious world for a final time, resolved to learn what that missing something was.

I was back.  We were still walking right by it, unaware of its presence.  Then I realized--this was the presence of God in our lives.  We were going through our days largely oblivious to the most obvious, most important part of our experience--God, the Creator, Sustainer, and Savior of the world.  It is Him we need most, and on Whom we most rely, and yet we pass the majority of our lives forgetful of His intimate presence in our hearts, minds, and souls.

Even though I am still extremely tired, barely able to stay awake as I type this, the magnitude of this experience transcends the capabilities of the written word, resulting in an account that is inherently inadequate.  Nonetheless, I write it down as both a reference point for myself (in hopes that this will remind me of the actual experience, which was a powerful spiritual reminder) and as a potential source of inspiration for any readers who may or may not exist out there.

St. Ignatius of Loyola crafted a spiritual exercise known as the Examen, which is a deliberate, meditative review of one’s day.  The purpose of the meditation is to discover how God was working in one’s life on any given day.  Positive experiences, known as consolations, are obviously portals for God’s grace to enter into our lives.  However, negative experiences or desolations, are also possible entry points for grace.  Learning to find God in both the positive and the negative, then, is the art of the Examen.  The prayer continues with a petition to God for forgiveness of one’s sins in the day, and a resolution to live the future in accordance with God’s will.

Prayers like the Examen are quite useful.  They can reorient our perspectives to find God in all things, both good and bad.  He is, after all, everywhere.  And how often do we go about our business day to day, completely unaware of His presence?  How often are we one of those people from my dream, walking through a hallway unaware of the hidden-in-plain-sight presence of God—life-giving, life-sustaining, life-transforming?  It’s the ultimate act of ungratefulness to forget our God.  But He still loves us.  He even still reaches out to us.  That is an amazing fact—proven time and again to those who seek His face—and it is a fact which should give us hope.  In spite of our fallen nature, which entices us to turn from God again and again, He loves us and reaches out to us.  Let’s try our best today not to forget Him.

Final note: As stated above, there was something surreal about this whole affair, to the point that I classify it less as an inspiring dream and more as a straight-up spiritual experience.  Rarely are we able to revisit dreams to fulfill a certain intention; more rarely still do dreams present us with such an obvious question or riddle, much less a clear solution.  I hope that the weight of this experience comes through in the words I have written.  If not, have faith that God works in very real ways, as He did with me tonight—and be receptive to what He’s trying to tell you today.

God bless,

Joezilla