We all have days where it seems like nothing goes right. Hopefully, we’ve also experienced days were everything we put our hand to works out perfectly. I guess this pattern of positive and negative is built into the fabric of our daily living. The more we accept it, the easier it is for us to Find God In All Things.
This understanding of recognizing God in all things is one of the key concepts of Ignatian Spirituality. Instead of using the terms positive and negative, St. Ignatius used desolation (negative) and consolation (positive). Both are movements of the spiritual life, and we will encounter them over and over again in our daily living.
When all seems lost and we are in a period of desolation, we can rest assured that it will not last forever. Desolation is not the final answer. For those who keep trusting and continue to do what they are doing, a period of consolation will follow. St. Ignatius reminds us, however, that periods of consolation will also not last forever. Part of our spiritual growth is recognizing and getting used to these movements.
This video clip does a good job at explaining how we might find God in all things. Unfortunately, there is a brief blip when Tim Muldoon is speaking. He’s the author of the Ignatian Workout, a book that I’ve mentioned before in my posts.
Overall, I think the clip helps explain the great need we have today to recognize God in all things.
