Have you ever given much thought to how you spend your time? Have you ever taken a diary of where your time goes. I can remember many years ago when I decided to go on a diet. The first thing the diet book recommended was to journal for a week and record everything that I ate. I was amazed by how many things I ate and when. It was a truly eye-opening experience to see how I was feeding myself.
This is true of our spiritual life, which is really our life in total. It encompasses everything we do, say, think, and pray. For instance, a person may say that they have no time to pray, and yet they commute 30 minutes to and from work. During this time they may listen to the news or a musical radio station...what would happen if this person decided to pray 5 decades of the rosary during this time? Or maybe another person spends 45 minutes each day on Facebook after the kids are in bed. Again, is this time "well spent" or just "spent".
I bring all this up because of how short life really is. I am turning 36 this year and amazed that I am probably half-way through my life. What have I done with it? How much time have I wasted on TV, worthless news, sports, entertainment, or just plain trying to please my self? If we take anything from the monastic and religious life, it should be the lesson of time spent well for the glory of God rather than the succor of self.
That all being said, we should examine our life more and more. The more we compare ourselves with Jesus and Mary the more we shall see just how lacking we are. This should humble us and give us a desire to grow and spend more of our time with and for Jesus. (To just dwell on our sinfulness and not be motivated to grow is just another sinister version of self-love....we love ourselves so much we are not willing to change to conform to Christ.) After all, the "unexamined life is not worth living!"
God bless you...All for Jesus!
This is true of our spiritual life, which is really our life in total. It encompasses everything we do, say, think, and pray. For instance, a person may say that they have no time to pray, and yet they commute 30 minutes to and from work. During this time they may listen to the news or a musical radio station...what would happen if this person decided to pray 5 decades of the rosary during this time? Or maybe another person spends 45 minutes each day on Facebook after the kids are in bed. Again, is this time "well spent" or just "spent".
I bring all this up because of how short life really is. I am turning 36 this year and amazed that I am probably half-way through my life. What have I done with it? How much time have I wasted on TV, worthless news, sports, entertainment, or just plain trying to please my self? If we take anything from the monastic and religious life, it should be the lesson of time spent well for the glory of God rather than the succor of self.
That all being said, we should examine our life more and more. The more we compare ourselves with Jesus and Mary the more we shall see just how lacking we are. This should humble us and give us a desire to grow and spend more of our time with and for Jesus. (To just dwell on our sinfulness and not be motivated to grow is just another sinister version of self-love....we love ourselves so much we are not willing to change to conform to Christ.) After all, the "unexamined life is not worth living!"
God bless you...All for Jesus!
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