I Believe

I believe there is a God as real as the chair I sit on daily. He is as close as my reaching out my hand to Him. It doesn't matter what He looks like, what He might be made of, or where, ultimately He came from. He is.

Since very early childhood, thanks to my Catholic education, He has been a daily part of my life. All the hard trials and lessons I've encountered on life's road, have been lovingly guided by His Hands. People have asked me, how can you be so certain God exists? How can I not? His signs are everywhere: in the beauty of a long golden sunset, in the multi textural beauty of a garden, or the simple majesty of the sea with its own infinite mystery.

During the stormiest periods of my life, when I would weep, utterly beyond human consolation, He would come and say: I love you, and a feeling of such tremendous peace and love would wash through my soul.

How very sad it is that many American children have not been taught to know Him. Lacking this bond and knowledge, it is little wonder children behave as they do. The greatest gift a parent can give their child is this precious belief in Something or Someone greater than themselves. This has little or nothing to do with formal church services, it has everything to do with nurturing a rich inner spiritual life.

When a child is taught to believe in a Supreme Being, he becomes aware of two things: there is a cause and effect to everything we do on this earth, and more importantly, there is Someone who loves them unconditionally. It also helps put many childhood fears into context. When a child believes in God and is reassured of an afterlife, death becomes much less fearsome.

We live in such a complex, increasingly frightening world, this simple faith can help us understand that while bad things happen, a greater good can come out of them. In our home, talks about God are part of daily conversations. Not in the sense of prayer, but in the context of our daily lives and world events. This has helped make God relevant to them in an increasingly personal way.

They now understand that it is simply not enough to make requests and have them granted. That God expects us to shoulder the burden and carry it as far as we can ourselves, then when we can do no more, turn it over to Him. They now realize, He doesn't give us what we want, but what we need- two very different things. They also are taught that God is not a punitive angry Being, shooting lightning bolts when angered. But rather, like a parent, He gets disappointed when we do things that are hurtful or destructive. And, like a parent, can teach hard lessons to help shape a straying soul.

If you haven't thought much about developing your child's spiritual life, it's time to make a start. Now, more than ever, children need this extra dimension of compassion and unconditional love, to help them see their way through to being healthy moral adults.