The Rev. Frances King of Bloomfield Hills' St. Regis Catholic Parish wrote a message in the July 12 church bulletin about the things in life we take for granted until a crisis like COVID-19 strips them away from us.

"It is probably safe to say that for all of us, some of the things we used to take for granted are no more," King, the Church Deacon, wrote. "Students and teachers took for granted schools, classroom teaching, testing and graduation. Some of us took for granted being able to go out to restaurants, meet friends at the coffee shop, enjoy musical shows or theatric performances, go to sporting events or to watch live events on television." 

All the lost routines, King wrote, can make a person question their purpose in life, to which he quoted from the Gospel. 

The Rev. King | https://stregis.org/

"'What is your purpose in life? Do you take that purpose for granted? Does it line up with the Word of God?' Jesus tells us in today’s Gospel passage that we must understand the Word of God with our heart and be converted," King wrote. "To be converted means that we must believe, practice, teach and defend the Word of God." 

A person's purpose in life is driven forward by God's goodness, he said. To practice this lifestyle is done through being good in life and to other people by surrendering ourselves to God. By doing this, God allows us to see what and how He wants us to do. 

"In this way, we teach the Word of God by our deeds and we use words, if necessary," King wrote. "To defend the Word of God is to have so much faith in this goodness and love that we can put our trust totally in Him. It is to have hope in His goodness and love knowing with certain expectation that He is with us and helping us here and now all the time." 

Serving others is how Catholics follow God. Defending God gives people a purpose in life and by doing so, "we will convey God’s love as we lovingly serve others and God will bless us with the grace of faith, hope and love to be His instruments of goodness and love," King wrote.