Singleness of Mind

"In a vision, St. Katharine received a ring from the Lord Jesus Himself as a sign of her betrothal to Him. This ring remains on her finger to this day." -from The Prologue from Ochrid

The story of St. Katharine's life never ceases to fascinate me, nor the lives of any of the saints for that matter. There is such a great difference between her life and mine, I am very often ashamed that I carry her name. I have not been called to martyrdom as she has, but certainly we all are called to be saints. I am married and have children, but I still should wear the ring of Christ in my heart signifying that I belong to Him first.

What I notice in the saints and, in fact, what made these men and women saints, was their singleness of mind. Their eyes did not falter, they remained on Christ. My eyes and my ears and all of my senses jump from one thing to the other. I can go days without standing before the Icons and praying, yet I desire to be good, to be one with Christ. It seems like a paradox, but then I am a paradox. Somehow, with the help of God and through the intercessions of the saints, I too will come to this singleness of mind. One day, I too, will bear Christ's ring on my heart.