Relying on the Fatherly Providence of God at Work
We're continuing our special series of posts to help us work through this
Holy Season of Lent. Each will incorporate the advice provided by Father de
Caussade in Abandonment to Divine Providence, specifically
referencing passages from the "Letters on the Practice of Abandonment to
Divine Providence" that are typically included in editions of his
spiritual writing.
Today we look at the idea of the Fatherly Providence of God, as it applies to our work, and as presented in Letter IX - The Goodness of God.
Let's begin by providing some context as we consider our desire for success in our work.
We all have some notion of what that - success - consists. For some of us it's simply making enough money to support our families - perhaps with some leftover for the little joys and pleasures of life. Maybe we want a promotion. Or perhaps we're seeking the greater rewards of ascending to the top of our company.
A few of us may want to start our own company. There could be many reasons for this. You hear people talk about wanting to "be my own boss." (As a business owner, I suggest you be careful what you wish for!) Many who start a business do so, however, out of necessity. They've been laid off from their job, many times they're older and finding a job that pays decently in their field is unlikely. Starting up some enterprise seems like the best option.
These are just a few of the sorts of work out there, along with the aspirations that accompany them.
If we're thoughtful and organized, we've got a set of goals, the accomplishing of which we believe will lead to whatever our definition of "success" might be. Again, the specifics will depend on the individual and the sort of work he's doing.
One of the goals of my own little business these days is to keep work "corralled." After a stretch of years working 6 days a week, with frequent spillovers into Sunday (involuntarily fulfilling the "24/7" of the proverbial workaholic), I've assessed how much financial reward the business provides these days. I balance that against the time I put in each day. Since I've become a lot better organized over the last decade or so, I'm in the position of squeezing a lot more juice from the lemon in fewer hours. Many tasks that once took six days, 8-10 hours a day of sweat can now be done in less time. But it took a decision - an act of will - to do the squeezing. The time created by a more compact workweek bolsters calmness and sanity. It also allows me to pursue other aspirations.
Accomplishing a goal or goals can prove quite satisfying. On the flip side, pursuing goals can sometimes be a source of frustration and disappointment when things don't go as planned. That's especially true if we're working hard every day, even to the point of exhaustion.
One response to such frustration and disappointment might be to reassess our goals, along with our plan to accomplish them. Are the goals really worth pursuing? If so, are we going about it the right way? If our answers are yes to the first and no to the second, then we try to concoct a better plan.
But even with a careful reconsideration of our goals, and reconfiguration of our means to accomplish them, we may still be left frustrated and disappointed. That's just how life goes sometimes. Yet, even with this understanding, we can remain frustrated, disappointed, with a resulting concern about the future that may take us as far as wondering what will happen to us if we never achieve the success we so desire.
So, having just looked at a theme (success at work) and several variations on how we might achieve success, we remind ourselves: Sometimes you win, sometimes you don't. And we might add that not only is success never assured, but, for many of us, failing to achieve our desired degree of success within our desired time-frame will likely be part and parcel of our work throughout our lives.
Which all now brings us to Father Caussade's wise words in Letter IX - The Goodness of God. He's writing to a nun again, who has likely expressed concern - perhaps even frustration and disappointment - about the future. Father responds:
"I do not understand your uneasiness, my dear Sister, nor why you take pleasure in tormenting yourself as you do about the future when your faith teaches you that the future is in the hands of an infinitely good Father Who loves you more than you love yourself, and Who understands what is necessary for you much better than you."
I don't know about you, but having been through the wringer of frustrated aspirations and unaccomplished goals more than once, I can attest that my response has not always been to think of God's Fatherly Providence. Next time we'll dig into why recognizing God's Fatherly Providence is so important.
Today we look at the idea of the Fatherly Providence of God, as it applies to our work, and as presented in Letter IX - The Goodness of God.
Let's begin by providing some context as we consider our desire for success in our work.
We all have some notion of what that - success - consists. For some of us it's simply making enough money to support our families - perhaps with some leftover for the little joys and pleasures of life. Maybe we want a promotion. Or perhaps we're seeking the greater rewards of ascending to the top of our company.
A few of us may want to start our own company. There could be many reasons for this. You hear people talk about wanting to "be my own boss." (As a business owner, I suggest you be careful what you wish for!) Many who start a business do so, however, out of necessity. They've been laid off from their job, many times they're older and finding a job that pays decently in their field is unlikely. Starting up some enterprise seems like the best option.
These are just a few of the sorts of work out there, along with the aspirations that accompany them.
If we're thoughtful and organized, we've got a set of goals, the accomplishing of which we believe will lead to whatever our definition of "success" might be. Again, the specifics will depend on the individual and the sort of work he's doing.
One of the goals of my own little business these days is to keep work "corralled." After a stretch of years working 6 days a week, with frequent spillovers into Sunday (involuntarily fulfilling the "24/7" of the proverbial workaholic), I've assessed how much financial reward the business provides these days. I balance that against the time I put in each day. Since I've become a lot better organized over the last decade or so, I'm in the position of squeezing a lot more juice from the lemon in fewer hours. Many tasks that once took six days, 8-10 hours a day of sweat can now be done in less time. But it took a decision - an act of will - to do the squeezing. The time created by a more compact workweek bolsters calmness and sanity. It also allows me to pursue other aspirations.
Accomplishing a goal or goals can prove quite satisfying. On the flip side, pursuing goals can sometimes be a source of frustration and disappointment when things don't go as planned. That's especially true if we're working hard every day, even to the point of exhaustion.
One response to such frustration and disappointment might be to reassess our goals, along with our plan to accomplish them. Are the goals really worth pursuing? If so, are we going about it the right way? If our answers are yes to the first and no to the second, then we try to concoct a better plan.
But even with a careful reconsideration of our goals, and reconfiguration of our means to accomplish them, we may still be left frustrated and disappointed. That's just how life goes sometimes. Yet, even with this understanding, we can remain frustrated, disappointed, with a resulting concern about the future that may take us as far as wondering what will happen to us if we never achieve the success we so desire.
So, having just looked at a theme (success at work) and several variations on how we might achieve success, we remind ourselves: Sometimes you win, sometimes you don't. And we might add that not only is success never assured, but, for many of us, failing to achieve our desired degree of success within our desired time-frame will likely be part and parcel of our work throughout our lives.
Which all now brings us to Father Caussade's wise words in Letter IX - The Goodness of God. He's writing to a nun again, who has likely expressed concern - perhaps even frustration and disappointment - about the future. Father responds:
"I do not understand your uneasiness, my dear Sister, nor why you take pleasure in tormenting yourself as you do about the future when your faith teaches you that the future is in the hands of an infinitely good Father Who loves you more than you love yourself, and Who understands what is necessary for you much better than you."
I don't know about you, but having been through the wringer of frustrated aspirations and unaccomplished goals more than once, I can attest that my response has not always been to think of God's Fatherly Providence. Next time we'll dig into why recognizing God's Fatherly Providence is so important.
We adore Thee O Christ, and we bless Thee,
Because by Thy Holy Cross Thou hast redeemed the world.
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