The Most Meaningful Christmas Gift

Last night I attended a second Christmas Mass at Sacred Heart Parish with my daughter, Laura, who played the organ there. Our whole family had already attended an earlier Mass at another parish. After Mass I was approaching the crib to say a prayer when my pastor and friend, Fr. Tom, approached me. He asked if I would be around for a few minutes. He said he had something to give me. I told him I was going to pray at the crib. After a few minutes of prayer, he returned and held out his hand as if to put something in mine, and said, "Merry Christmas." I opened mine and accepted his gift. It was a key; the key to my own parish church, where years ago I had gone many, many times at all hours of the day and night to pray by myself in front of the Blessed Sacrament. I had spent countless hours there in deep union with my God in contemplative prayer, unaware at the time, that this was the type of prayer that I was experiencing. All I know is that I would unite with God so completely, that I wouldn't know where I was or that as many as eight hours during the middle of the night had passed. For God would have me so enveloped in His love that I would be lost in His divine embrace. I would speak with Him, cry with Him, listen to Him, just be with Him and share love with Him. It was a time in my life when union with God was simple and easy and it lifted my spirits so that nothing on earth could stand between my God and me. Nothing could distract me; nothig would worry me; nothing would hold power over me except God's own love. It was a time of great spiritual growth and a time I will always hold special in my heart; a time I have longed for many times over. At one difficult time in my life a different pastor had taken the key from me and told me that because I was only a volunteer youth minister, not a paid employee, I was no longer entitled to a church key. This broke my heart and I pleaded with him to reconsider since I so loved my time alone in prayer in the church, sitting behind the altar in front of the tabernacle, lost in my silence with God. But, he insisted in my giving the key back. Now, some five or six years later, at a time in my life when I so need this private time with my Lord in that most holy of spots, Fr. Tom gave me the most meaningful of gifts, the key. I think that I might have spoken a few times during the past few years to Fr. Tom my desire to once again have access to the church at all times, so that I could renew my intimate times alone with Jesus as I had spent them before. Praise God that I have a pastor/friend that understands this strong desire of mine. I am sure the Holy Spirit whispered this idea into his heart.