God is in charge - Detachment 3

This next month I am in charge of doing our ongoing formation for my Secular Franciscan group.  Initially I thought of doing the formation on the Eucharist but as I prayed over it I kept coming across things about detachment so I decided to explore that topic for formation.  Well, several months ago I signed up for a talk being given by Fr Albert Haasse OFM that was held yesterday and guess what he talked about?  Detachment!  Before God was whispering to me about detachment, yesterday, he spoke rather loudly and in a New Orleans accent to me about it.

I actually wondered seeing so many of my Franciscan brothers and Sisters were there if I should change my topic.  I don't think so.  I think it was God telling to go for it and giving me some more input.

One of the ideas that Fr Albert talked about is how detachment and renunciation are not the same thing.  Renunciation is cosmetic, or as he called it "lawn mowing".  It doesn't get at the root of the problem.  You deny yourself what you really feel you need to be happy and so make yourself and those around you miserable.  Detachment is a process that gets at the root.  It starts with recognizing  the thoughts that lead you to the desire for whatever it is.  Recognizing the thought and asking yourself what is that all about allows you to begin to detach yourself from the things that hold you back in growing spiritually.

One of the other points I found helpful is the idea that when we are so attached to things and ideas we are insulting God.  We aren't trusting Him to take care of us, to provide us with what we need.  We are inessiance saying to God that He may have created us and the world we live in but we know what we need and we don't need Him to get it.  We think that these things will make us finally happy and we chase them.  We get angry with God because He doesn't give them to us when we ask Him for them.  Lord, make we popular, make that person desire me, give me success, give me money, but in reality we are asking God to give us a stone, when what He wants to give us is the Living Bread.