Daily Retreat 10/10/06
2006 Oct 10 Tue: Ordinary Weekday
Gal 1: 13-24/ Ps 138(139): 1b-3. 13-14ab. 14c-15/ Lk 10: 38-42
From today’s readings: “The one who once was persecuting us is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy.... Guide me, Lord, along the everlasting way.... Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things. There is need of only one thing....”
One Thing to Remember
What if someone (be it your boss, your family, or even yourself, or Someone else) were to review your “To-Do” list today and then, in all seriousness, say, “There are many things here to do, but really, of all things, in fact, there is need of only one thing to be done. Concentrate on that one thing, and don’t be so anxious and worried about the non-essentials!” If true, what a liberating revelation that would be! What a relief to be able to finally catch your breath, focus, and stop worrying about so many things!
But let us further consider that this single new focal point did not merely supersede all the many things on today’s “To-Do” list, but because of its overarching importance, all of our other tasks and chores for this whole week are now officially to be downgraded. In fact, not just for the whole week, but the whole month too - yes, even the whole year! Better yet still: in consideration of your whole life, if you zoom in on only one particular thing, concentrate your efforts and energies, and choose to simply take care of that one thing, then your whole life will be an unsurpassed success!
How can that overbearing endless “To-Do” list of our life ever be reduced to just one thing? Who is so naive as to propose such a preposterous possibility? And yet, we all heard the Word: “Martha, Martha - you are anxious and worried about many things. There is need of only one thing!” Now of course, it is not just “Martha, Martha” who is addressed by the Word of the Lord, but each one of us can hear Jesus repeating our own name as He insists: “You are anxious and worried about many things. There is need of only one thing. Choose the better part, and it will not be taken from you!”
What then is this “one thing” which Jesus reveals is to be the focus of our life? Well, clearly it has to do with God - we should choose to have Him at the center, rather than the outskirts of our life. But what does that mean in practice?
Well, when you see a man who is tan, well-groomed and well-dressed, with bulging biceps, but a tucked-in tummy, it’s obvious that his physical well-being is his priority! Such a man never puts exercise or diet on the back burner - he shuns shabbiness, and runs from the near occasion of flabbiness.
Likewise, when you see a saint who is quaint with well-groomed virtues and well-dressed in joyful holiness, bulging with generosity, but tucked in humility, it’s obvious that his eternal well-being is his priority! Such a man never puts spiritual exercise or fasting on the back burner - he shuns vice, and runs from the near occasion of sin.
So, choosing God in practice as the heart of our life means just that: practically choosing God in our everyday life. In the morning, a simple but essential prayer: “I need you Lord today - keep me ever beside You, and help me listen to what You have to say!” Then throughout the day, to check the Cross more often than the watch, for the hands on the crucifix point to eternities, whereas the hands of a clock merely time temporalities. And when day is done and it is finished, to pray in His words, “Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.... Father, into Your hands, I commend my spirit.” Jesus taught us to choose the better part - all that means is choosing Him as our heart!
Gal 1: 13-24/ Ps 138(139): 1b-3. 13-14ab. 14c-15/ Lk 10: 38-42
From today’s readings: “The one who once was persecuting us is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy.... Guide me, Lord, along the everlasting way.... Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things. There is need of only one thing....”
One Thing to Remember
What if someone (be it your boss, your family, or even yourself, or Someone else) were to review your “To-Do” list today and then, in all seriousness, say, “There are many things here to do, but really, of all things, in fact, there is need of only one thing to be done. Concentrate on that one thing, and don’t be so anxious and worried about the non-essentials!” If true, what a liberating revelation that would be! What a relief to be able to finally catch your breath, focus, and stop worrying about so many things!
But let us further consider that this single new focal point did not merely supersede all the many things on today’s “To-Do” list, but because of its overarching importance, all of our other tasks and chores for this whole week are now officially to be downgraded. In fact, not just for the whole week, but the whole month too - yes, even the whole year! Better yet still: in consideration of your whole life, if you zoom in on only one particular thing, concentrate your efforts and energies, and choose to simply take care of that one thing, then your whole life will be an unsurpassed success!
How can that overbearing endless “To-Do” list of our life ever be reduced to just one thing? Who is so naive as to propose such a preposterous possibility? And yet, we all heard the Word: “Martha, Martha - you are anxious and worried about many things. There is need of only one thing!” Now of course, it is not just “Martha, Martha” who is addressed by the Word of the Lord, but each one of us can hear Jesus repeating our own name as He insists: “You are anxious and worried about many things. There is need of only one thing. Choose the better part, and it will not be taken from you!”
What then is this “one thing” which Jesus reveals is to be the focus of our life? Well, clearly it has to do with God - we should choose to have Him at the center, rather than the outskirts of our life. But what does that mean in practice?
Well, when you see a man who is tan, well-groomed and well-dressed, with bulging biceps, but a tucked-in tummy, it’s obvious that his physical well-being is his priority! Such a man never puts exercise or diet on the back burner - he shuns shabbiness, and runs from the near occasion of flabbiness.
Likewise, when you see a saint who is quaint with well-groomed virtues and well-dressed in joyful holiness, bulging with generosity, but tucked in humility, it’s obvious that his eternal well-being is his priority! Such a man never puts spiritual exercise or fasting on the back burner - he shuns vice, and runs from the near occasion of sin.
So, choosing God in practice as the heart of our life means just that: practically choosing God in our everyday life. In the morning, a simple but essential prayer: “I need you Lord today - keep me ever beside You, and help me listen to what You have to say!” Then throughout the day, to check the Cross more often than the watch, for the hands on the crucifix point to eternities, whereas the hands of a clock merely time temporalities. And when day is done and it is finished, to pray in His words, “Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.... Father, into Your hands, I commend my spirit.” Jesus taught us to choose the better part - all that means is choosing Him as our heart!
posted by FrPitstick | 10/04/2006
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