The Catholic Writers Guild

With God, You Can Handle Anything

 

I had the gift of an extra-fruitful spiritual direction session not too long ago. I usually keep the details of the conversations between me, the director, and God. However, there are moments where sharing my experience may benefit others, and this is one of those times.
I cannot recall the topic we were discussing when my director began to share a story about a three-handled coffee mug. She told me when she presented this thought exercise to others in the past, they became overwhelmed and anxious at the thought of how to hold it or use it. As I began to imagine it in my mind, I was intrigued and excited all at the same time. When my spiritual director asked how the three handled mug made me feel, I couldn’t help but share that I saw the persons of the Trinity—a handle for Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

While imagining this mug, the emotions of anxiety and stress never entered my mind. I felt peace knowing I was in good company. I had actually hoped there might be a fourth handle on which to place my own hand. I began to consider all of the times in my life when I needed the power of God to move mountains. That handy coffee mug would be a reminder that both all things are possible with God and that I am not alone.

I also related to why having a cup with that many handles would confuse some. I considered times when I felt pulled in multiple directions and how difficult it is to anchor myself in one place. I believe that worry is the thief of joy, and I consider anxiety the brother of worry. Don’t get me wrong, there are many times when my mind wants to let fear win, but my prayer experience reminds me that I am not supposed to tackle life alone. God is in it with me.

Thinking back on that session, I laugh at how surprised my director was by my response. I was the only person she had encountered who wanted a three-handled mug and the strength it would give me.

In their book called Personal Prayer: A Guide for Receiving the Father’s Love, Fr. Boniface Hicks, OSB and Fr. Thomas Acklin, OSB brought up the topic of anxiety as a gift from God. When we experience anxiety, it comes in the form of a felt emotion. Usually, it sends off an alarm that something needs to be corrected. We can take this signal and consider it a direct alert from God, letting us know that we want to take control. Then we can bring it to God and surrender the situation to Him. How wonderful it is that we can go to God for help, and what a powerful image it is to imagine our hand, with the Trinity, banding together as one to accomplish anything.

A month after this session, I still could not get the image of the three-handled cup from my mind. I had an unquenchable longing to hold one and imagine God’s hands along with mine, having a conversation over a cup of coffee. I finally allowed the urge to win out, consulted the internet, landed on eBay, and a week later I clutched my three-handled mug. The cup is hand-made pottery, with a bumpy texture. The sentimental type I am, I can imagine the hands of the person who created it. I slide my fingertip across the initials scratched into the bottom, too blurred to make out. A reminder of my imperfections and the faithfulness of God. The space where the handles joined the cup reveals finger swipes, merging the clay. A prayerful moment brings me peace in connecting with another person who loved that cup while combining myself with the persons of the Trinity.

I’ve prayed with the cup only a couple of times, and depending on what I fill it with, there may be a heaviness to it, or it remains light. I have also filled it with feelings, concerns, and prayers. Imaginative prayer is not for everyone, but if it connects you to God, go for it. In my days, when life gets so heavy I need to unload, I place my hands alongside the persons of the Trinity and lift my cup to the heavens. I may not be able to handle things independently, but I can do all things with God.

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Copyright 2023 Kimberly Novak
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