Serious Application of the Virtue of Humility at Work - 2
Picking up from our last post, recall that with Lent now gaining traction in our lives, we should be incorporating our Lenten discipline into our daily routine. Prayer, fasting and almsgiving, the so-called Three Pillars of Lent, take center stage.
Again, we note that these Three Pillars of Lent ought not to be a kind of contest or competition. We don't pursue them to rack up merit for ourselves, although we may very well gain merit depending on the purity of our intentions.
Each has a place in our Lenten discipline. But it's not for us to keep score. Let God be the Scorekeeper.
Our focus: We want to change. We want to become more holy.
Our spiritual guide, Fr. Joseph Schryvers, C.SS.R. (1876-1945), provides profound insight into the virtue of humility. We will try to apply this to our work.
Ever ready to render a service, especially at his own expense, his ambition is to serve all, and to occupy the last and lowest place.
This one's perhaps the toughest in a workplace, isn't
it? Rendering a service maybe not so much; isn't this what we're paid to do? At our
own expense? Well, we do this in a sense with out time and effort, if
not our money. Ambition to serve all? Here we wander from the reservation in the typical
workplace. But humility won't accept selectivity. Serving a
boss, obvious. Serving colleagues, well, OK - but all the time?
The
big blow comes with occupying the last and lowest place. But if we can
retain personal humility while somehow pursuing our work without
undermining our position and the just rewards that come with it, that
might work well with this instruction. And just think of how powerful
this can be to advance our spiritual life.
The rest of
Father's advice centers on spiritual childhood. It may seem to be out of
step with the dynamic of the workplace, especially a fairly competitive
workplace. Fair enough. But that's what makes spiritual
childhood so valuable in the long run. Challenging? For sure.
Impossible? Let's give this a fair read and see what we come up with:
Imagine keeping these thoughts close to our minds and hearts as we work. OK, we can't do this constantly. But to the extent we can read and meditate on these powerful images of true, sincere humility, with God's grace we may be able to gain some traction with this mighty virtue.
And let's not forget that, if humility increases, it will naturally manifest itself in our thoughts, words, and actions, even in our workplace. How that occurs will be quite specific to each of us an an individual. Meanwhile, we won't take away or minimize even a smidgen of the time and effort we need to apply to the tasks that await us. Nothing changes there.
Perhaps we can recall that Our Lord, apprentice of great St. Joseph, his foster father, worked for the vast majority of his years on earth. And he worked conscientiously, assiduously, producing the best possible product.
Could it have been otherwise? And could it not be the product of a man with the greatest humility?
With such understanding, may God grant us the grace to follow His example.
We adore Thee O Christ and We Bless Thee
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