Some Specific Suggestions on How To Do God's Will at Work Today

Picking up where we left off last time, here are some specific suggestions to consider today at work as we seek to do God's Will. As you'll recall, that was what we characterized last time as our sincere serious intention. 

But as with many intentions, especially those related to our spiritual life, we run the risk of our sincerity and seriousness butting heads with the demands of the day - especially at work. Such demands may both distract and deflect our priorities from God's Will to an exclusive focus on the desire for positive results from our labors. While there's no necessary conflict between doing God's Will and getting good results at work, we run the risk of settling for the brass ring of worldly success to the detriment of explicitly prioritizing doing God's Will, if we're not careful.

The suggestions we'll get from Father William Doyle come from something he wrote as a reminder to himself. He had expressed an explicit intention - as we saw last time - of completely surrendering himself to God's Will. Here he lists specific, practical actions that he - or any of us - can perform during the work day to keep God's will first and foremost in our hearts and minds.

We might categorize this list under the heading of "mortification." We've discussed mortification many times in the past, especially those we can perform even during the busiest times at work. Whatever mortification you may practice during the work day, perhaps these suggestions can expand your selection. They did mine.

(a) Never to avoid suffering e.g. heat or cold, unpleasant people etc.

If we work indoors, it's likely we'll not face too much suffering from heat or cold. Outdoor work's another story. Wherever we work, if our job entails contact with others, we've likely encountered some folks whom we've characterized as unpleasant. In all these conditions, Father wants us to forego avoidance. If we do not avoid any of this, suffering in some form - either mild or worse - will likely follow. And, as we should know by now, suffering should be welcomed as a something we can offer up, ideally doing so without complaint - even cheerfully if possible. 

(b) Of two alternatives, to choose the harder e.g. ordinary or arm chair.

So much of our life revolves around comfort, doesn't it? But, to be sure, we're not talking about sitting in some contraption that would cause us injury. For example, those of us who spend a lot of time in front of a computer at work really do need a good ergonomic chair to conduct our business every day. But in other situations where an ergonomically-designed chair isn't necessary, it's simply a matter of accepting - even better seeking - the less comfortable alternative if we have the choice.

(c) To try and let absolutely no occasion of self-denial pass: they are too precious.

Start with something we've mentioned in the past: delay eating a meal. You sit down to lunch, say grace, and before digging in, wait a couple of minutes. Basic stuff.

From here, we can consider no salt, no condiments, water instead of a tasty beverage, cutting down on volume, even fasting altogether. With food as a springboard, fire up the imagination. What seems interesting, attractive, enticing? Go through the senses: seeing, hearing, touching, smelling,, for example. Pick an item and deny yourself the indulgence.

(d) As far as possible, not to omit my ordinary penances when a little unwell.

This one assumes, of course, that some for of penitential practices are part of your regular spiritual exercise - like, for example, those mortification items. It's easy to "excuse" ourselves when we're not feeling great from these. You're extra tired, achy, generally under the weather. You figure you're too delicate at this juncture to mortify. Maybe you are. But maybe not so. The point: Lets not be too easy on ourselves.

(e) My constant question to be: What other sacrifice can I make? What more can I give up for Jesus? How can I do this action more perfectly?

This one captures everything very neatly. Just know, however, that the questions, by themselves, may not elicit good answers. The precondition for asking the questions: a real, sincere love of Jesus Christ. For that, we need to develop a real personal relationship with Him. If He's Someone to whom we pray from time to time to fulfill some sort of "religious obligation," that's not a personal relationship. 

One suggestion here: Picture someone with whom you have a deep, loving relationship. Compare that to how you approach Jesus. However you evaluate your relationship with Our Lord, just know that it's not completely separate or isolated from our human relationships. After all, Jesus had both a divine and human nature in the one Person of Jesus Christ. Remember?

With that, Father Doyle has given us specific actions we who are aspiring to do God's Will can consider. We can take his suggestions to heart and apply them all the time, even at work.

Thank you, Father Willie, for our superb advice!