Starting Fresh Again at Work - 3
Let's continue with a theme we introduced last week: starting fresh again at work. Last time we talked about us Catholic men at work "shining our light" by not only doing our best, but providing a good example to others. Today let's look at some specifics when it comes to giving a good example.
It starts with the greatest of all the virtues: charity, of course. On our own, we may not always naturally default to charitable mode. But that's OK. Our Lord knows that, at least for most of us, our natural inclination is to think of ourselves first. The why the vice we call "pride" has been the downfall of many a soul since Eve picked the apple and convinced Adam to take a bit. And that's why St. Vincent de Paul, wrote about the virtue of humility thusly:
"...humility - the lowering of oneself below everyone else with that sense that one is really worse than others, and the refusal to judge anyone. For it is pride and self-love that binds us and makes us struggle for our own opinions against others.
"We must never glance at what is good in ourselves, much less ponder over it, but we should search out what is wrong and what is lacking; this is an excellent way of remaining humble. No gift for winning souls nor any other capacity that is within us is our own; we are only agents for it, and it will not save us from perdition. However great the work that God may achieve by an individual, he must not be pleased with himself, nor indulge in any sort of self-satisfaction; he ought rather to be all the more humbled, seeing himself merely as a clumsy tool of which God has condescended to make use, just as He did of Moses rod which wrought miracles but remained only a common rod - a brittle stick."
I don't know about you, but I kind of recoiled when I first read this. For one thing, it's a sharp knife that dug digs deep into the thick layer of pride that envelopes me far too much of the time. For another, it flies directly in the face of the typical tidbits we folks in the workplace chew on all the time: assertiveness, career advancement, ambition, even self-promotion. These don't seemm to mix very well with humility. And despite all the talk about "teamwork," we all know that he who rises to the top doesn't get there by debasing himself, right? So identifying and building up our strengths does seem to make a lot of sense. And yet our great saint counsels us not to see what's good, but rather concentrate on what's bad. Isn't this "negative thinking"?
We're not going to spend time today debating this. All we'll say here is that a dose of humility would likely prove just the tonic many of us need to get out of ourselves and really know, love and serve God rather than purely our own interests. Indeed, a good dose of humility might clear the air of any overweening pride that keeps us at arms length from God and neighbor and provide just what we need to get that fresh start we've been talking about.
To finish up for today, here's a short prayer we posted in the past to encourage us along these lines. It should help us give that good example to others expected of a Catholic gentleman at work:
Teach me, my Lord, to be kind and gentle in all the events of life: in disappointments, in the thoughtlessness of others, in the insincerity of those I trusted, in the unfaithfulness of those on whom I relied. Let me put myself aside: to think of the happiness of others, to hide my little pains and heartaches so that I may be the only one to suffer from them. Teach me to profit by the suffering that comes across my path. Let me so use it that it may mellow me, not harden nor embitter me; that it may make me broad in my forgiveness, not narrow, haughty, or overbearing. May no one be less good for having come within my influence; no one less pure, less true, less kind, less noble, for having been a fellow-traveler in our journey towards Eternal Life. As I go my rounds from one distraction to another, let me whisper from time to time a word of love to Thee. May my life be lived in the supernatural, full of power for good, and strong in its purpose of sanctity. -Anonymous
It starts with the greatest of all the virtues: charity, of course. On our own, we may not always naturally default to charitable mode. But that's OK. Our Lord knows that, at least for most of us, our natural inclination is to think of ourselves first. The why the vice we call "pride" has been the downfall of many a soul since Eve picked the apple and convinced Adam to take a bit. And that's why St. Vincent de Paul, wrote about the virtue of humility thusly:
"...humility - the lowering of oneself below everyone else with that sense that one is really worse than others, and the refusal to judge anyone. For it is pride and self-love that binds us and makes us struggle for our own opinions against others.
"We must never glance at what is good in ourselves, much less ponder over it, but we should search out what is wrong and what is lacking; this is an excellent way of remaining humble. No gift for winning souls nor any other capacity that is within us is our own; we are only agents for it, and it will not save us from perdition. However great the work that God may achieve by an individual, he must not be pleased with himself, nor indulge in any sort of self-satisfaction; he ought rather to be all the more humbled, seeing himself merely as a clumsy tool of which God has condescended to make use, just as He did of Moses rod which wrought miracles but remained only a common rod - a brittle stick."
I don't know about you, but I kind of recoiled when I first read this. For one thing, it's a sharp knife that dug digs deep into the thick layer of pride that envelopes me far too much of the time. For another, it flies directly in the face of the typical tidbits we folks in the workplace chew on all the time: assertiveness, career advancement, ambition, even self-promotion. These don't seemm to mix very well with humility. And despite all the talk about "teamwork," we all know that he who rises to the top doesn't get there by debasing himself, right? So identifying and building up our strengths does seem to make a lot of sense. And yet our great saint counsels us not to see what's good, but rather concentrate on what's bad. Isn't this "negative thinking"?
We're not going to spend time today debating this. All we'll say here is that a dose of humility would likely prove just the tonic many of us need to get out of ourselves and really know, love and serve God rather than purely our own interests. Indeed, a good dose of humility might clear the air of any overweening pride that keeps us at arms length from God and neighbor and provide just what we need to get that fresh start we've been talking about.
To finish up for today, here's a short prayer we posted in the past to encourage us along these lines. It should help us give that good example to others expected of a Catholic gentleman at work:
Teach me, my Lord, to be kind and gentle in all the events of life: in disappointments, in the thoughtlessness of others, in the insincerity of those I trusted, in the unfaithfulness of those on whom I relied. Let me put myself aside: to think of the happiness of others, to hide my little pains and heartaches so that I may be the only one to suffer from them. Teach me to profit by the suffering that comes across my path. Let me so use it that it may mellow me, not harden nor embitter me; that it may make me broad in my forgiveness, not narrow, haughty, or overbearing. May no one be less good for having come within my influence; no one less pure, less true, less kind, less noble, for having been a fellow-traveler in our journey towards Eternal Life. As I go my rounds from one distraction to another, let me whisper from time to time a word of love to Thee. May my life be lived in the supernatural, full of power for good, and strong in its purpose of sanctity. -Anonymous
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