Many Graces Gained

Earlier today I went on a walk with a couple of the guys. As we walked through the streets and around a park, one of us said,“Can you believe that we have only a week left?” I have a hard time even thinking that our pilgrimage is beginning to wrap itself up and that in a few days we will be coming home. One thing that I have really thought about is how many graces we have received as pilgrims. It is easy to take our graces for granted when we are moving from site to site, studying hard for exams, or simply taking a break in all the action with a little hacky sack or a card game. I began to look back on the pastweeks and think, “How much has the Lord given me? How much has he graced me in little ways during this time?” Day to day life makes it hard to think about the small graces we all receive daily from God. It is easy to miss the little things that fill us in the noisy world we live in. The Holy Land is just as noisy as it is at home after all. The Lord gives us little things, and these are gifts to help us in our lives. During our time here, there have been so many little graces: a holy hour in the Grotto of the Nativity, a morning spent on the Mount of Beatitudes, an all-nighter in the Holy Sepulchre and many others. Our time here is almost over and the reflection is only beginning. What graces have we had? How have they helped us? What can we do to keep looking for them in the future, as ministers of Christ?