Catholic At Home | Katie Sciba

“Like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ” (1 Pt 2:5). 

The year 2024 was a banner one for me. The night before Andrew and my anniversary, an overflow in our basement destroyed nearly everything we had down there. At the time, my husband and I were already enduring growing pains together, so this emergency was an unpleasant additional stress. Weeks later, I lost a friend unexpectedly, and my dog died just before my last and favorite grandparent passed away. 

It was the sort of year that feels less like a chapter and more like a collapse.

I recall a particular instance of prayer late at night in my quiet, empty church. Surfacing from the emotional wreckage that surrounded me, I knelt on the cold floor—the whole room barely lit by the sanctuary candle—and cried from the depths of my heart: What are You doing? I could barely choke out the question.

I had just finished reading Trustful Surrender to Divine Providence and came to understand, at least intellectually, that all things—joys, sorrows, and seemingly neutral details—are within the Lord’s will, whether He ordained them or permitted them to pass. Further, I knew deep within myself that, though I might grapple with trust, God Himself is trustworthy. 

This knowledge was paramount to eventual, peaceful surrender to God’s will.

The Cornerstone

Shortly after, another line of Scripture pressed in: “The stone which the builders rejected has become the cornerstone” (Ps 118:22).

In the hindsight of history and faith, we modern Christians recognize Jesus with ease and clarity as the foretold Messiah. Typology unveils His fulfillment of prophecies from as far back as Genesis. He is God and yet He chose to become a stone—rejected by many, loved by some, misunderstood, but above all, set in place by the Father.

If Christ Himself submitted to being placed, what does that mean for us?

Stones aren’t consulted about their placement. They don’t request the visible corner or the sunniest side of the wall or are even given the whole of the design. Stones are chosen, shaped, and bear weight for the sake of the whole house.

When I lose sight of the Lord’s trustworthiness, I’d rather be the architect than a mere piece of the structure. I want control over the design. I want to know what’s going where and why, and how long this whole thing is expected to stand.

But as a stone, I’m not asked to bear that knowledge, I’m asked to consent.

Spiritual Sacrifices & Living Stones

Subject to the Designer, we’re placed with our spouses and children by One who not only knows all and best, but also who loves most deeply. We weren’t created arbitrarily; the Father who placed Jesus on earth with perfect timing and intention takes no less care with you—your heart, your gifts, even the crosses He asks you to carry.

This kind of living requires humility and strength often beyond our abilities. It required me to trust that the basement flood, the griefs, and the hidden tensions were not random debris but the spiritual sacrifices St. Peter mentioned and necessary for my shaping. These sacrifices are rarely so dramatic, though. Over the course of our lives, they look like patience in fatigue, forgiveness when we’re in pain, and persistent faith when we’re confused. They look like loving when we would rather withdraw or remaining in the wall of the mentioned “spiritual house” when we’d rather stand apart.

In asking our consent and trust, the Lord does not ask us to become dull and inert. St. Peter beckons us to be living stones—fully ourselves and fully alive—each facet of our personality, history, and longing wanted in His design. Serving as living stones is not the flattening of our identities, but the fitting of who we are into something greater than we could construct alone.

We don’t always understand what the Lord is building. You might find yourself asking Him “Why?” in a dim church; but open your soul to learning, even slowly, that the Builder is trustworthy and He does not misplace stones. 

“For it stands in scripture: ‘Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious, and he who believes in Him will not be put to shame’” (1 Pt 2:6).

Katie Sciba is a national speaker and Catholic Press Award-winning columnist. She and her husband Andrew were married in 2008 and are blessed with seven children.

This article appeared in the April 2026 edition of The Catholic Telegraph Magazine. For your complimentary subscription, click here.