Because I SAID SO!!!

So, let's face it. If you are a parent, you know what I'm talking about. How many times have you said those words to your kids as an answer to their question "WHY?" I know I say it occasionally. Well, I guess I should be honest. I say it daily. I say it MULTIPLE times daily. And the response I get from my kids is usually one of the following:
1. Turning on their heels and storming off in the other direction.
2. Whining "but moooommmmmm! Please!"
3. A retort of "who made you boss?" or "I'm going ask daddy. Hmph."
4. Tears and "you never give me what I want!!!!!"
And of course, I remind myself that I said "No" and used "Because I said so" as my justification because I can. I am the parent. I know what's best for my children. I expect them to trust my judgment. Let my will be done. As far as parenting goes anyway....

But what about when the shoe is on the other foot? When I was diagnosed with MS, it messed up my plans. If you know me, you know I am a planner to a fault. I was at my prime. Volunteering umpteen hours a week at school. Going places with friends. Having fun on the weekends. Traveling. Buying whatever we wanted whenever we wanted to. Working full time. Contemplating a PhD. Life was good. And I was busy. Never ever stopped. And then it happened...on my way to Mass, of all places. I fell. My leg gave out, just like that. No big deal, right? Little did I know, it was God's way to stop me in my tracks.

As time went on, the stress of being "sick" took its toll. Doctor to doctor, with no diagnosis, and I just thought my worst fear was coming true...I was losing control and losing my mind at the same time. I thought I had just plum gone nuts. So I prayed and prayed for a diagnosis. Then I got one. Then I asked God to take it back. I didn't like it. Yeah, that didn't quite work out. So I watched my "Life Plan" go out the window. I was forced to scale back, to slow down.

WHY? WHY GOD? WHY ME?

And the answer was very simple...

BECAUSE I SAID SO.

I started today reading about something called "divine providence". According to the Catechism of the Catholic Faith, divine providence is "the disposition by which God guides us, his creatures, with wisdom and love to His ultimate end: our perfection. Basically, it refers to God's will. Divine providence is meant to bring us happiness -- eventually. But there is only one way to reach the happiness after the trial--SURRENDER!


In this month's issue of Magnificat, it is written ""at every moment God produces what is needed for the task at hand, and the simple soul, instructed by faith, finds everything as it should be and wants neither more nor less than what it has." This is fortified by what we read in the Catechism "...all are open and laid bare to his eyes, even those things which are yet to come into existence through the free action of the creatures."

So here is what I've learned today. If we look at God as our Father, and we place ourselves in the position of the child, we need to accept "Because I said so" as an acceptable answer to the question "WHY?" We all have our "Why Me?" moments. And it's OK to question those. And we can respond much like our children do. We can...
1. Turn on our heels and storm off to our rooms. But what good will that do? He can still see us.
2. Whine "but come on God! Pllllleeeeeaaaasssseeee!!!!!" But it won't change anything.
3. Retort and say "who made you boss?" But I'm pretty sure that won't get you anywhere.
4. Tears and say "this is not what I want!!!" This would be acceptable. Even Jesus cried in the Garden of Gethsemane. (More on this to come later this week)

But after we are done pouting and stomping our feet and whining about it, we should try to remember that no matter how much we fight his will, the end result will be the same. And the decisions He has made are always for our greater good. Just look at Mary. I'm pretty sure she thought about telling him NO...and what would have happened to us if she had?

So we have to just try to SURRENDER. Because "what if the trials of this life are his mercies in disguise." --Blessings by Laura Story
 
Now it's almost homework time in our house....I feel some "Because I said so's" coming!