I have one living grandparent. My mother’s father is a spry 97-year-old who still makes the trip between his home in New York and his sisters’ home county of Donegal, Ireland. The stories he tells are a charming weave of Irish exaggeration and straight facts, though it’s occasionally hard to distinguish between the two. Because I live in the Midwest, I prize the precious few occasions when I see Grandpa in person. He has more years under his belt than anyone I know, making his wisdom not only hard-won, but worth abiding. His faith in God is as solid as an oak planted firmly in sacred ground, and though Grandpa possesses the sternest brow I’ve seen on a person, the hope in his heart is contagious and drowns out any uncertainty in my own.

I called him recently. “How are you doing, Grandpa?” “Well! I’m still waiting for God to call me home, but!” he continues, “I’m the happiest I’ve ever been.”

Bernard McGeever is a faithful soul who fearlessly and joyfully anticipates death; but he’s in no rush. He enjoys assisted living at a Catholic home where he attends daily Mass. He drives around the area visiting family, and he spends Saturday mornings praying peacefully outside abortion facilities. He’s truly capable of doing anything his heart desires.

What’s interesting is, the more years Grandpa has aged, the fewer are his heart’s desires. And not because age or infirmity holds him back—on the contrary; through his nearly 100 years on Earth, he sees more clearly that his connection with Christ is the most deserving of his focus and devotion. This is the kind of wisdom that experience affords a soul. Grandpa’s Mass attendance, whispered Rosaries and prayerful reading yield an overflow of love for his family, but more so a yearning for Heaven. In short, he’s living with the end in mind.

Isn’t that just how it’s supposed to be? St. Augustine famously said, “You have made us for Yourself, oh Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in You.” We spend our lives fixed on what is in front of us, going about our daily routine tasks,

often looking forward to rest. Society has a variety of coping mechanisms to see us through challenges or to take the edge off, yet not one of them offers “the peace that surpasses understanding” that God is so eager to give. Sometimes we’re so preoccupied with the details of living that we lose sight of its great purpose.

Keeping “the end in mind” is practical wisdom we apply to any kind of goal. We make better food choices for healthier bodies. We save money so we can get out of debt. When we have an objective in mind, we’re excited, driven and focused. It’s easy to recognize that eating out or buying another coffee mug won’t get us closer to the more important goal we’re working toward.

Why don’t we do this more often in our spiritual lives? Maybe we don’t know what the goal is or, maybe, because it’s less imposing than the tasks that need to be done right now. So, let’s clear the air. Inherent to our identity as humans is the call to know God intimately. We are made to receive His love and reflect it to others, as well as to offer ourselves to God, asking to know His will and for the courage to do it; all this, so we will ultimately go home to Heaven when our earthly days end. This is the point. It’s why each one of us is here. Anything that draws us away from all of the above is noise.

So, ask God to grace you with the ability to recognize Him in your life. Ask Him to show you the aspects of your life that pull you away or draw you closer to Him. Pray for the wisdom to remember that the ultimate goal is sublime joy in Heaven.

The best years of my grandfather’s life aren’t long gone; they’re happening now. His gaze is fixed on Heaven and so he lives accordingly. Jesus, in Your mercy, give us this clarity, so we will spend our days happily living for You, so we can be fully united to You in Eternal Life. Amen.

Katie Sciba is a national speaker and Catholic Press Award- winning columnist. Katie has been married for 14 years and is blessed with six children.

This article appeared in the July 2023 edition of The Catholic Telegraph Magazine. For your complimentary subscription, click here.