February 20th, Saturday after Ash Wednesday

Isaiah 58: 9b-14, Psalm 86: 1-2, 3-4, 5-6, Luke 5: 27-32

Oftentimes we get so wrapped up in material items that we “lose” God. Among the shopping, the activities, and the running from place to place, God often becomes pushed into the back of our minds even though He is the reason for our life on earth. However, God has subtle ways of reminding us that He is here. If we look close, we can “find” Him in the other people around us.

At school, everyone is involved in the “Pay It Forward” project. It entails that if someone does you a favor, instead of paying the favor “back,” you pay it “forward” by doing a favor for someone else. In this way, kindness and care are circulated; one small good deed can catalyze a chain reaction of good deeds.

Love can be passed from person to person by something as small as a friendly smile or a thoughtful compliment. By “paying forward” our happiness to others, we all celebrate the joy of being alive in God’s presence. While God is not here with us as His own physical Person, He is here in the arms of a friend or family member, in the praise of a teacher or colleague, and even in the warm smile of a stranger. God can be found in everyone if we just take a few seconds to stop and look. We keep God alive in our hearts by “paying it forward.”

Elaina Grott, sister to Meghan, Hannah, and Abby; senior at Prospect High School