A Sunday Thought to Start the Week Off Right
We've been applying the lessons we learn from exercise to other areas of our life these past two Sundays. Let's continue with this simple observation about the challenge of regular, especially vigorous exercise: It helps us know our bodies better. Facing the rigors of a demanding routine, we quickly know how our bodies feel this particular day, what we're capable of doing, what specific challenges we may face. If necessary, we can modify our routine to accommodate our physical state that day.
Over time, this awareness gained from our regular exercise routines will spill over into our mental and emotional lives: Some days we're sharper than others; some days we're "feeling" either stronger or more vulnerable. We may or may not know the reasons why, just as we may or may not know why those 50 push-ups are so much harder today than they were yesterday. But whether we know the whys, our ability to know our current state helps us better approach and manage our work and the demands of our personal lives. If some days we struggle more than others, so be it. It's just the way of things are.
Of course, every once in a while we may wake up and feel simply rotten. Maybe we've caught a cold, or have a fever. Maybe we're suffering from some sort of injury or ailment like that ubiquitous lower back pain that afflicts so many of us form time to time. Those are the days we wish we could just stay in bed. And, of course, if you're really sick, that may be the wise thing to do. But unless we've got a high fever or some debilitation that requires bed rest or medical attention, chances are we'll push up out of bed and do the best we can, working through our discomfort or pain.
Now let's apply this understanding to our spiritual lives. The soul can also be affected by how we feel at any moment. But in the past we've talked about the importance of distancing ourselves from how we might feel on a given day when it comes to our spiritual lives. For example, while Sunday can present us with a chance to ease up and take a break in consideration of our disability, unless you're totally incapable, you'll likely at least get yourself to Mass, right?
The fact is, some commitments and obligations beckon no matter how rotten we may feel on any given day. If you can discipline yourself to exercise and show up to work even when you're not feeling great, you can do the same in your spiritual life. What matters most in our spiritual lives is not our feelings, but our will. If we're determined to love God, to do His Holy Will, and express our desire to Him, it really doesn't matter how we feel.
For example, am I all fired up about getting to Mass on this Sunday morning when I feel a bit under the weather? Probably not. Do I go to Mass anyway? Yes. When I get to Mass, is my mind totally focused on what's happening on the altar? Likely not. It strays under normal circumstances. If I'm feeling rotten that day, will I perhaps be thinking more about how I feel rather than Holy Sacrifice of Our Lord's Body and Blood during the consecration? Perhaps. But we can always at least try to re-focus attention on the present moment. We can tell Our Lord that despite my weakness, I really do want to pay better attention, I really do love Him, even more than I love myself. When we do that, we utilize the faculty of our will to unite ourselves to Him rather than rely on or give in to our feelings.
To be sure, this isn't always easy to do. But it's doable; and it's not complicated. You don't need to feel a thing. Just do it. Of course, we'll have to forget about ourselves here. Not always easy for our self-centered fallen human nature. But if you can get over yourself, again, it's doable.
Again, remember that you're already getting over yourself - how you happen to feel that day - when you push yourself to exercise, or you get your butt into work on those days you're not feeling your best. If you can do that, you can push yourself to improve your spiritual life.
One motivation here might be if we remember that Our Heavenly Father never rests on our behalf. He never stops thinking about us even for a moment. Indeed, the entirety of Creation continues to exist because His solicitous attention never strays from us and all that surrounds us every moment of every day. If it did, the entire universe, including you and me, would simply cease to exist. But don't worry, He won't. Just remember that His Creation expresses His Infinite Love, and Love will never die. How do we know this? Because rather than let us die to sin, He instead died for us: "God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."
We'll cap off these Sunday thoughts with some final words from Abbot Vital Lehodey:
“Whilst ruling the stars and presiding over the revolutions of the earth, He concurs with the ants in their labors, with the insects in their least movements, and with the countless millions of atoms constituting a single drop of water in their invisible activities. Without Him not a leaf can stir, not a blade of grass die, not a grain of sand be moved about by the wind. He keeps a solicitous watch over the birds of the air, over the lilies of the field; and as each of us is worth more than many birds, He does not forget His human children. A thousand details of daily life will escape the notice of the father of the family and the most attentive of mothers; but God in His infinite intelligence possesses the secret of providing without effort for the most trivial incidents as well as for the most important events. Yes, He has numbered the very hairs of our heads; not one of them can fall without the permission of our heavenly Father. And what can seem so insignificant as the fall of a single hair? Nevertheless, God thinks of it…And thus I, an insignificant atom in the great world, occupy day and night, always and everywhere, the mind and the heart of my Father in Heaven. Oh, how infinitely touching is this truth of our holy faith, how touching and how consoling!”
Happy Sunday!
Over time, this awareness gained from our regular exercise routines will spill over into our mental and emotional lives: Some days we're sharper than others; some days we're "feeling" either stronger or more vulnerable. We may or may not know the reasons why, just as we may or may not know why those 50 push-ups are so much harder today than they were yesterday. But whether we know the whys, our ability to know our current state helps us better approach and manage our work and the demands of our personal lives. If some days we struggle more than others, so be it. It's just the way of things are.
Of course, every once in a while we may wake up and feel simply rotten. Maybe we've caught a cold, or have a fever. Maybe we're suffering from some sort of injury or ailment like that ubiquitous lower back pain that afflicts so many of us form time to time. Those are the days we wish we could just stay in bed. And, of course, if you're really sick, that may be the wise thing to do. But unless we've got a high fever or some debilitation that requires bed rest or medical attention, chances are we'll push up out of bed and do the best we can, working through our discomfort or pain.
Now let's apply this understanding to our spiritual lives. The soul can also be affected by how we feel at any moment. But in the past we've talked about the importance of distancing ourselves from how we might feel on a given day when it comes to our spiritual lives. For example, while Sunday can present us with a chance to ease up and take a break in consideration of our disability, unless you're totally incapable, you'll likely at least get yourself to Mass, right?
The fact is, some commitments and obligations beckon no matter how rotten we may feel on any given day. If you can discipline yourself to exercise and show up to work even when you're not feeling great, you can do the same in your spiritual life. What matters most in our spiritual lives is not our feelings, but our will. If we're determined to love God, to do His Holy Will, and express our desire to Him, it really doesn't matter how we feel.
For example, am I all fired up about getting to Mass on this Sunday morning when I feel a bit under the weather? Probably not. Do I go to Mass anyway? Yes. When I get to Mass, is my mind totally focused on what's happening on the altar? Likely not. It strays under normal circumstances. If I'm feeling rotten that day, will I perhaps be thinking more about how I feel rather than Holy Sacrifice of Our Lord's Body and Blood during the consecration? Perhaps. But we can always at least try to re-focus attention on the present moment. We can tell Our Lord that despite my weakness, I really do want to pay better attention, I really do love Him, even more than I love myself. When we do that, we utilize the faculty of our will to unite ourselves to Him rather than rely on or give in to our feelings.
To be sure, this isn't always easy to do. But it's doable; and it's not complicated. You don't need to feel a thing. Just do it. Of course, we'll have to forget about ourselves here. Not always easy for our self-centered fallen human nature. But if you can get over yourself, again, it's doable.
Again, remember that you're already getting over yourself - how you happen to feel that day - when you push yourself to exercise, or you get your butt into work on those days you're not feeling your best. If you can do that, you can push yourself to improve your spiritual life.
One motivation here might be if we remember that Our Heavenly Father never rests on our behalf. He never stops thinking about us even for a moment. Indeed, the entirety of Creation continues to exist because His solicitous attention never strays from us and all that surrounds us every moment of every day. If it did, the entire universe, including you and me, would simply cease to exist. But don't worry, He won't. Just remember that His Creation expresses His Infinite Love, and Love will never die. How do we know this? Because rather than let us die to sin, He instead died for us: "God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."
We'll cap off these Sunday thoughts with some final words from Abbot Vital Lehodey:
“Whilst ruling the stars and presiding over the revolutions of the earth, He concurs with the ants in their labors, with the insects in their least movements, and with the countless millions of atoms constituting a single drop of water in their invisible activities. Without Him not a leaf can stir, not a blade of grass die, not a grain of sand be moved about by the wind. He keeps a solicitous watch over the birds of the air, over the lilies of the field; and as each of us is worth more than many birds, He does not forget His human children. A thousand details of daily life will escape the notice of the father of the family and the most attentive of mothers; but God in His infinite intelligence possesses the secret of providing without effort for the most trivial incidents as well as for the most important events. Yes, He has numbered the very hairs of our heads; not one of them can fall without the permission of our heavenly Father. And what can seem so insignificant as the fall of a single hair? Nevertheless, God thinks of it…And thus I, an insignificant atom in the great world, occupy day and night, always and everywhere, the mind and the heart of my Father in Heaven. Oh, how infinitely touching is this truth of our holy faith, how touching and how consoling!”
Happy Sunday!
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