Transcript of the Video Above

Daily reflections for Lenten Easter, written by Oblate Father Ron Rolheiser, OMI.

Some 20 years ago, while on retreat, an elderly nun was assigned to me as director. She proved to be a woman of rare maturity, providing the guidance that I needed at the time.

Being young and intense, I too easily made a cosmic drama and tragedy out of every ordinary desolation or setback. She challenged me with a wisdom, an earthiness and a sense of humor that continually helped deflate my pompousness.

At one stage of the retreat, sensing my Hamlet type propensities, she gave me a little proverb. Fear not, you are inadequate. Through the years, that little adage has come back to me off and on, mostly at times when I’ve been a bit overwhelmed.

There’s a certain consolation in it. Whether you’re a parent, a teacher, a minister, a priest, an advocate for justice, or simply a friend to someone in need, there are countless times when you come face to face with your own inadequacy. It is healthy, humbling and uplifting to accept the fact that we are not God and that we are not asked to try to be.

Fear not, you are inadequate. To accept the truth of that proverb is to make a little prayer.