Imagine if we had the courage of Saint Stephen in the face of our anxieties and fears.
But Stephen, filled with the Holy Spirit,
looked up intently to heaven and saw the glory of God
and Jesus standing at the right hand of God,
and Stephen said, "Behold, I see the heavens opened
and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God."
Perhaps we have known holy souls who have them unflappable peace even in times of crisis. Maybe we've even tasted it ourselves at one time or another. Even the stones being thrown at us are less real than the Son of Man in heaven. This is the result of "fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith" (see Hebrews 12:2). But it is not just for ourselves and our own peace that we want to be in this spiritual state. We're just better people when Jesus is at the center of our lives.
Then he fell to his knees and cried out in a loud voice,
"Lord, do not hold this sin against them";
and when he said this, he fell asleep.
So how do we get there? How do we get to a place where we can trust Jesus so completely? How can we be so focused on him that even all earthly splendor seems to fade? Like the psalmist we make him our refuge. We make Jesus consciously the place we go when we are in trouble. Not just one time, but more and more. We learn to trust him enough to commend our spirits into his hands, just as he does with his Father, just as Stephen does with him.
Even more practically, we make his presence in the Eucharist our refuge. We go to him there when we are in trouble. We receive him when we hunger. This is the daily bread that teaches us to rely on God. When we learn to take refuge in him here when times aren't so bad we are more prepared to trust him when things are worse.
Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life;
whoever comes to me will never hunger,
and whoever believes in me will never thirst."
Then, no matter the circumstance, with Stephen and with Jesus we can pray:
Into your hands, O Lord, I commend my spirit.
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