What Kind of Rock are You?

What Kind of Rock are You?

"Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while." Mark 6:31

In Today’s Gospel, Jesus tells us to take ourselves out of our everyday busyness, find a quiet place and to simply rest. By telling us to go to a deserted place he would like us to be free of distractions and noise, free of any thing that will keep us from that rest. Finding a deserted place, or even true peace and quiet, in this day and age is difficult but we must work at it… because it is in the quiet of our surroundings and the stillness of our minds that we can truly hear God’s gentle whisperings to us.

A few weeks ago I went to a retreat house in Cohassett, on the edge of the ocean. When I am by the ocean I am closest to God and this is my favorite “deserted” place. On the shore of the retreat grounds, a prayer labyrinth is set up. I had never prayed within a labyrinth but thought I would give it try. When praying with a labyrinth one stands at the entrance, stills the mind and readies oneself to enter a conversation with God. As one walks to the center of the labyrinth and back, through many curves and twists one becomes aware of God’s presence.

I stood at the entrance of the labyrinth, listening to the gentle lapping of the waves upon the shore and stilled my mind. I asked God to help me with some issues I was having and asked for His guidance. I wasn’t expecting much since I’ve never prayed this way before but it turned out to be an awesome experience! As I walked I found myself not pondering my issues but focusing on the gravel beneath my feet, the round stones that lined my path, the boulders, bedrock and sand nearby. I gave up what I wanted to pray about and focused upon geology. When I came to the center of the labyrinth, I found a mound of rounded, sea-polished stones holding up a crucifix at its top. It then occurred to me that God was talking to me through the stones! We ARE the stones, the gravel, the bedrock, etc. Each of us has a role to play in this world—just like different types of rocks. The gravel creates a solid path, rounded stones along the way guide us on the path, bedrock supports the ground we walk on and sand provides us with filler. Rocks have many functions as do people… each important. We are like living stones building up a spiritual temple (cf 1 Peter 2:5). So I ask you what kind of living rock or living stone are you?

God Bless, Holly Clark