The Only House That Matters

One hot, muggy summer evening not long ago, I bounded out the front door to retrieve our daily newspaper. As the full-glass storm door closed behind me I heard an odd flopping noise. I turned to see what was wrong with the door and, to my horror, saw a 3-foot snake dangling from the top of the door, flopping against the glass.

In case you are wondering, I belong to that group of people who is terrified of snakes; so I did what any snake-fearing person would do. I ran. I ran about three steps and then stopped…abruptly. Where was I going? I turned around to look, hoping the snake was gone. No such luck. As the snake tried to crawl away on the bricks of the house I realized its “tail” was caught between the storm door and the door frame, thus the reason for the “flopping noise.” In a state of panic and filled with anxiety, I wondered how I would get back into the house.

I could not open the door and just assume the snake would fall out and crawl away; what if it fell inside the door and slithered into the house, or worse yet, what if it fell on me? I surmised that I would need something to brush the snake away as I opened the door. I walked around to the back of the house to get a broom only to realize the shed door was locked as were all the rest of the doors to the house. I had no way back into the house except through that front door. I had no broom, no keys and no cell phone to call anyone for help.

I went back to the front of the house to see if the snake had somehow miraculously freed itself, which it had not.  Trying to remain calm and devise a plan, I crossed the road and rang the neighbors’ doorbell. When Ed came to the door I told him I had a situation, and I needed a broom and a person. His wife, Alane, heard me and grabbed a broom, and the three of us marched across the road to my front door. While Ed gave us direction, I reluctantly opened the glass storm door as Alane brushed the snake away.

The above-mentioned event could be viewed as somewhat amusing, entertaining or, as I experienced it, a horror story. A closer look reminded me of the difference between what could and what should happen when we face obstacles in our everyday lives – obstacles that can ultimately keep us from entering the house of our Father in heaven.

As I gave this further thought, I realized that anxiety does not necessarily have to be a bad thing. It was my state of anxiety that set me in motion to seek help for my problem. Many times though, our gut reaction is to run from the obstacle, just as I began to do when I saw the snake. When we do so, we only become more anxious and further remove ourselves from any kind of resolution to our problem.

Even though we may know that to focus on Christ is the key to overcoming anxiety about obstacles that could ultimately keep us from entering our Father’s house in heaven, sometimes we just need to step back and take a deep breath (or maybe abruptly stop running as I did with the obstacle of the snake) and be open to where God is leading us. We must turn to Him in trust and keep our focus on Christ, not on ourselves, gathering ourselves together and remaining calm as we listen for the voice of Jesus.

Saint Frances de Sales says it well as he advises us, “If you earnestly desire to be delivered from some evil, or to attain some good, above all things, calm and tranquilize your mind, and compose your judgment and will; then quietly and gently pursue your aim, adopting suitable means.”

While the story I shared about the snake was very dramatic for me, it pales in comparison to anything that would keep me from getting to heaven. It was important for to me to get back into my house, and I was not going to let that snake stop me. I calmed myself as best I could and came up with a plan. If I can put that much effort and muster that much courage into getting past a snake, then why would I not put even more of an effort toward being able to enter the only house that matters—my Father’s house in heaven?

What obstacles do we face each day? Can we turn our anxiety over to Jesus and trust the way He leads us? I pray that through trust in our Lord Jesus we may find the way past our daily obstacles so that when the day comes to leave our earthly dwelling we will be welcomed into the only house that matters—our Father’s house in heaven. Let’s not let anything stop us.

Brenda Hopf is a member of Divine Mercy Parish in Dubois County and also contributes to the “Sharing the Load” column in The Message.