Being Busy

“Our business is to get to heaven. Everything else is a sheer waste of time.” St. Vincent de Paul

I waste a lot of my time doing frivolous things. Yes, I need to do chores around the house – cut grass in the summer, shovel snow in the winter and keep things in order. There are errands to run and duties to perform. Even the monks and nuns I have visited need to work to keep their homes running smoothly. We cannot simply let things slide. There is time for everything. Recently, I needed to take care of some things after mass, and I was losing patience with our parish priest since he likes to begin mass a few minutes late. He reminded me that I was at mass and there was no need to be impatient. When someone says they are busy or that there are not enough hours in the day, maybe they need to rethink their priorities.  Maybe we all need to do that.

“No time is lost by prayer. For those who pray are workers together with God.” St. Isidore

 St. Alphonsus Liguori, for example, made a vow to not waste a single moment and was incredibly productive, writing many books and hymns while also engaging in extensive pastoral work. He suffered many physical challenges towards the end of his life, yet he continued as best as he could. No challenge put before us is easy. We need to move forward constantly. We can often think of saints as great people admired in the media. It actually is the opposite. When Zita was twelve, she was a housekeeper for a rich weaver in Lucca, Italy. She stayed with that family for years. She worked hard but found time to attend mass, recite prayers and still complete her tasks. Of course, the other servants resented her. She used to say: "A servant is not holy if she is not busy; for people of our position to be lazy is fake holiness." Zita would help the poor, assist those in prison and eventually was so respected that she gained more control over her free time. People sought her out for many reasons. She even experienced visions. Zita was quickly proclaimed a saint after her death. I wonder how much we ourselves can emulate people such as these in a world full of distractions.

“He who trusts himself is lost. He who trusts in God can do all things.” St. Alphonsus Liguori

We like to think that our lives are so important. We all want a role to play, people to influence and the ability to control everything around us. We get angry over unnecessary things; we resent that we do not have enough time to do things in our day, but sometimes we need to remember that only one thing is necessary. Martha needed to hear that from our Lord when she complained of the work she had to do. The Carmelite Sisters remind me of their duties when I ask for a visit. I cannot simply stop by unannounced. I need to respect their schedule. I need to remember that I need to do things that I might not enjoy but I do them for our Lord. Let’s try to remember to do the small things in life and that whatever we do, Christ sees it.

“Everyone of us needs a half hour of prayer every day – except when we are busy. Then we need an hour.” St. Francis de Sales