|
Pick a Time, Find a Place, Take
5
Fr. John Cusick
He stood in the middle of the sanctuary
after communion. On behalf of his mother and his family, he thanked
people for attending his father's funeral Mass. In his right hand
he held a small, black-covered book. It was designed to fit easily
into a pocket or purse. The cover was held together with tape. Obviously
it had been used for a long time. He held it up so that all could
see it. He said the book was used by his father every day for many,
many years.
Each morning his father, with book in hand,
would journey down to the basement and open the book to the page
marked for the appropriate date. Sitting in his favorite chair he
would read the reflection for the day, close the book and ponder
the meaning of those words for that particular day. After a few
minutes of privacy, he would return upstairs to be with his family,
and then leave for work. He participated in this ritual every day
- workdays, weekends, holidays, vacation days. It didn't matter
when or where.
He practiced this ritual every day for one
reason: to maintain his sobriety. For him being sober meant so much
more than not drinking. It wasn't a negative thing: something you
couldn't do. It was a positive thing: developing a daily way of
life that kept you in touch with a vision and a practice for being
fully alive, healthy and sober.
What about you? What do you do to stay in
touch with a vision and a practice for being fully alive? We are
not kids any longer. We are not just playing the life game of how
much can we get away with; what's the least we "gotta do."
We are no longer reactors to an adult world, parental rules, societal
restrictions and civil laws.
We are adults, young adults in the prime
of life. We must make significant positive decisions about the direction
of our lives and what will keep us moving forward.
The words of Jesus Christ keep calling to
us, "I have come that you may have life and have it to the
full."
As important as good health and career success
are, a full life doesn't come from Bally's Total Fitness or a successful
climb up the corporate ladder. A full life doesn't come with season
tickets to the Bulls, Bears, White Sox, Black Hawks or Cubs, Orchestra
Hall, the Lyric Opera or the Steppenwolf Theater, as enjoyable as
these events can be.
A full life means living for others and
not just yourself. A full life is built on faithfulness to God's
dream for the world that Jesus lived and passed along to us. A full
life is seeing the face of God in all people; treating people honestly,
kindly and justly; caring about the poor and less fortunate because
they are our brothers and sisters; respecting life in all its dimensions.
A full life is offering love in places of loneliness and isolation,
offering healing and forgiveness in places of grudge and revenge.
To be fully alive means staying in touch with the presence of God
within us.
Living fully takes remembering that even
more than we desire to be with God, God desires to be with us. The
difficulty is that our lives are so incredibly busy. By making a
commitment to "Be still and know that I am God" (Psalm 46:10), we
open ourselves up to God's movement in our lives.
So, living fully takes time - regular, consistent
time. After all, nothing of real value comes easy. We must take
the needed time and give the needed attention to being our best
selves. That is true for any element of our lives - our work, our
relationships, and our faith.
How about picking a time, finding a place
and focusing on God's dream and plan for you? How about 5 minutes
a day? There are a number of resources you could use. The first
is the Scripture. Take a passage from the Gospel of Matthew, Mark,
Luke or John. Read a story of Jesus. Read it slowly. Then reflect
on these questions for the next several minutes: What is going on
in that story? What was the experience like for the people who encountered
Jesus? Does that type of experience ever go on in my own life? How
does the Scripture story unfold? How might the situation in my own
life unfold?
You can also buy a wonderful little book
called Vision, written by Fr. Mark Link, S.J. Each page has a scripture
quote, a short story and reflection questions. A beginning and ending
prayer is presented. This type of daily exercise can keep you in
touch with the words of the Lord: "I have come that you might have
life and have it to the full."
There is another bible-based series titled,
Share the Word, published by the Paulist Fathers. Like Fr. Mark
Links series, there is a daily scripture passage, reflection questions
and a daily prayer. Both are opportunities for getting and staying
in touch with God's presence.
Take 5. Take a mere five minutes each day
to be alone with yourself and God. It's a challenge. It takes discipline.
Sometimes it takes work; other times it takes letting go and trusting
in God's love. Either way, it's worth it. Growing deeper spiritually
- and remembering your identity as God's daughter or God's son -
is worth it.
Pick a time. Find a place. Take 5. How about
starting right now?
|
