23 January 2018
Tuesday of the Third Week in Ordinary Time
It is recorded that when the ark of the covenant was first brought to Jerusalem, King David danced before it with abandon, that is, with all his might. This scene makes a good Ignatian contemplation because there is much fodder for the imagination. What did David look like? What kind of a dance was he doing? What did the music sound like? What kind of a day was it?
The point of letting our imagination fill in details like this is to create a space for God to act. Of course, God can act whether or not we create a space for Him, and we can never force God’s hand, but we can cooperate with God’s grace, and we can ask for it.
One of the reasons that David was so loved by God was because of this dance that he did. It was not a half measure. He put himself all out there, rejoicing in God’s goodness with all his might. To those of us who are long used to half measures, David is a good role model. We come to Church, we pray, but perhaps we lack David’s enthusiasm. Our neighbor approaches us with a certain need. We assist him or her, but only with a half measure.
Find one act of love today, be it towards God or towards your neighbor, and do it with all your might, with abandon, like David did.