KNOWING THE TIME OF OUR VISITATION

A MESSAGE FOR THE 9th SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST

Choosing the right moment is usually something we learn by experience.  The more often we barbecue, for example, the better we get at knowing when to take the steak off the grill so it will be perfectly medium rare.  There are other times, however, when we need perfect timing for something we may have never done before, like choosing the perfect time to propose to one’s girlfriend, for instance.

From these two examples alone, we can see that choosing the right moment can be a trivial matter or something far more important. And now and again, there are times in our life when it is essential for our eternal salvation to know when it’s time to act. These rare occasions are what our Lord calls the time of our visitation.

Just what are these times of our visitation, and how can we recognize them when they come along?  When we find ourselves before a life-changing choice that will make the difference for us between heaven or hell, salvation or damnation, this is our visitation from God.  He may intervene directly in our lives to place the choice before us (think of St. Paul’s conversion on the road to Damascus), or more often, he may use a human instrument such as a priest or parent to explain to us the danger we face if we continue on our present course.  Sometimes signs present themselves in the things around us, or the circumstances we face. But no matter who or what shows us that all-important choice, then it’s up to us, NOW, to make that choice and make the right one.

We won’t have any difficulty recognizing the moment when it comes.  We all have a conscience, and it will direct us to do the right thing.  And if we make the wrong choice, our conscience will persist in reminding us of our mistake, hopefully pushing us to regret it and correct it.  But we shouldn’t count on that.  The time of our visitation may come only once, as it did in the case of the Jews. Our Lord was born, he lived, and he died among them.  But they made the wrong choice, refusing their Messiah, and turning their temple into a den of thieves.  

Let’s not make the same mistake.  If we are visited by God and given a chance to amend our ways, let’s clasp the opportunity as a drowning man grasps on to a life raft.  Chances are that it’s our only chance.