Fr. Mike Schmitz

And that is, man, so good for us to know. I remember years ago, I have a spiritual director and my spiritual director, he stopped and we were talking and he said, you know, you're going to be forgotten really soon. He was kind of out of nowhere. We were just talking about stuff. And he's like, you know, you're going to be forgotten really quickly. And I was like, oh, yeah, Father, I know.

And that is, man, so good for us to know. I remember years ago, I have a spiritual director and my spiritual director, he stopped and we were talking and he said, you know, you're going to be forgotten really soon. He was kind of out of nowhere. We were just talking about stuff. And he's like, you know, you're going to be forgotten really quickly. And I was like, oh, yeah, Father, I know.

And that is, man, so good for us to know. I remember years ago, I have a spiritual director and my spiritual director, he stopped and we were talking and he said, you know, you're going to be forgotten really soon. He was kind of out of nowhere. We were just talking about stuff. And he's like, you know, you're going to be forgotten really quickly. And I was like, oh, yeah, Father, I know.

He's a priest. He's a hermit. Basically lives up in northern Minnesota. And he meets with priests for spiritual direction, some other people for spiritual direction. And he just had that word that, you know, you're going to be forgotten pretty quickly. He said, you know, you're not Thomas Aquinas. And I was like, oh, Father, absolutely. I am very much aware of this.

He's a priest. He's a hermit. Basically lives up in northern Minnesota. And he meets with priests for spiritual direction, some other people for spiritual direction. And he just had that word that, you know, you're going to be forgotten pretty quickly. He said, you know, you're not Thomas Aquinas. And I was like, oh, Father, absolutely. I am very much aware of this.

He's a priest. He's a hermit. Basically lives up in northern Minnesota. And he meets with priests for spiritual direction, some other people for spiritual direction. And he just had that word that, you know, you're going to be forgotten pretty quickly. He said, you know, you're not Thomas Aquinas. And I was like, oh, Father, absolutely. I am very much aware of this.

And I don't have any problem with that at all. And I think it's because this wisdom of Ecclesiastes, you know, I think that any person who's living in this life has thought about their life and the impact of their life has already come to that place of, yeah, I get it. I get it. At some point, very soon, I will be completely forgotten, even by the people who are close to me.

And I don't have any problem with that at all. And I think it's because this wisdom of Ecclesiastes, you know, I think that any person who's living in this life has thought about their life and the impact of their life has already come to that place of, yeah, I get it. I get it. At some point, very soon, I will be completely forgotten, even by the people who are close to me.

And I don't have any problem with that at all. And I think it's because this wisdom of Ecclesiastes, you know, I think that any person who's living in this life has thought about their life and the impact of their life has already come to that place of, yeah, I get it. I get it. At some point, very soon, I will be completely forgotten, even by the people who are close to me.

That's just how life goes. And that recognition of being able to be at peace with this is such a gift. It's a gift to any one of us to be able to be at peace with this because I know and we know that, yes, if all there is is this life, then this life doesn't mean anything. But this life is not all there is. And this life matters. Your life matters.

That's just how life goes. And that recognition of being able to be at peace with this is such a gift. It's a gift to any one of us to be able to be at peace with this because I know and we know that, yes, if all there is is this life, then this life doesn't mean anything. But this life is not all there is. And this life matters. Your life matters.

That's just how life goes. And that recognition of being able to be at peace with this is such a gift. It's a gift to any one of us to be able to be at peace with this because I know and we know that, yes, if all there is is this life, then this life doesn't mean anything. But this life is not all there is. And this life matters. Your life matters.

One last note in chapter nine, verse 11, just so powerful. Again, I saw that under the sun, the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to the intelligent, nor favor to the men of skill, but time and chance happened to them all. Oh, so good. It is, again, it's not sometimes just a matter of you're the smartest in the room.

One last note in chapter nine, verse 11, just so powerful. Again, I saw that under the sun, the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to the intelligent, nor favor to the men of skill, but time and chance happened to them all. Oh, so good. It is, again, it's not sometimes just a matter of you're the smartest in the room.

One last note in chapter nine, verse 11, just so powerful. Again, I saw that under the sun, the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to the intelligent, nor favor to the men of skill, but time and chance happened to them all. Oh, so good. It is, again, it's not sometimes just a matter of you're the smartest in the room.

You're the strongest in the room. You're the fastest in the race. It's just sometimes chance. Sometimes it's just to have this opportunity. And why did I lose? Well, because the time was up. Time and chance happens to all of us. And again, that is so good because rather than giving into our desire to control, we get to have the call to surrender rather than the desire to control.

You're the strongest in the room. You're the fastest in the race. It's just sometimes chance. Sometimes it's just to have this opportunity. And why did I lose? Well, because the time was up. Time and chance happens to all of us. And again, that is so good because rather than giving into our desire to control, we get to have the call to surrender rather than the desire to control.

You're the strongest in the room. You're the fastest in the race. It's just sometimes chance. Sometimes it's just to have this opportunity. And why did I lose? Well, because the time was up. Time and chance happens to all of us. And again, that is so good because rather than giving into our desire to control, we get to have the call to surrender rather than the desire to control.

We have the invitation to trust. And yes, of course, we want to be as fast as we can be as strong as we can be as wise as we can be as good as we can be. Ultimately, when it comes down to it, the call in every one of our lives is to trust the Lord and surrender to him. That's so, so good. Oh my gosh. What a gift it is to be able to journey through Ecclesiastes with you.

We have the invitation to trust. And yes, of course, we want to be as fast as we can be as strong as we can be as wise as we can be as good as we can be. Ultimately, when it comes down to it, the call in every one of our lives is to trust the Lord and surrender to him. That's so, so good. Oh my gosh. What a gift it is to be able to journey through Ecclesiastes with you.