One morning last week, I was in the church at Our Lady Queen of Martyrs North Campus saying my morning prayers.

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed the corn stalks in the field just south of the church. They were moving dramatically in one direction and then another. Being curious, I went to the window and saw a small herd of deer eating the corn on those stalks. To get at the prized kernels, they would bite on an ear of corn and then rapidly shake the stalk until the corn fell to the ground to be easily eaten.

I marveled at their perseverance in obtaining their food that day. Yet they needed that nourishment to survive, and they seemed grateful for its abundance.

As I sat back in my pew, I thought about the essential nourishment we need on our earthly journeys, which is found in the Holy Eucharist. More important than the food our bodies may need is this gift of God Himself, which enables us to survive and do well, despite the negative and evil forces in the world that tend to distract us on our journey to Heaven.

This Blessed Nourishment does not take the amount of effort those deer exhibited in order to be consumed. All we need to do is attend Mass and be in a state of grace to receive it.

We should seek this nourishment that God gives us daily as often as possible! We need it for our survival!

By: Deacon Tom Gryzbek