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Sunset, by Beniamin
Pop (2007) via Freeimages.com
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I had to
laugh. The Responsorial Psalm at mass yesterday from Psalm 40 was "Here am
I, Lord; I come to do your will." Imagine this: I have the little one on
my lap and he was so wiggly that not once but twice, he threw his head back and
popped me in the mouth. Felt GREAT! Then the big one was not happy not getting
my full attention and was fighting to push shut the book that I was
"reading" to the little guy. It was not a banner day. On days like
this, the best this single mom can do is try to catch every few words that the
priest says and glean something worth hanging on to. On days like these I find
comfort in the words of a dear friend, "Your kids are your prayer right
now".
Still, when I started singing along to "Here am I, Lord" I thought, "God is probably laughing at me and asking- Where are you?" My mind just happened to focus on the mass for that moment and I chose to participate, but seriously, was my heart really speaking the words my mouth was saying? Nope. Then I got to thinking about all the distractions we have in our lives and how even when I don't have two toddlers vying for my attention, I'm still a pretty sorry example of attentiveness.
Thankfully, God knows our hearts. He knows when we want more of Him but are pulled in two or three other directions. He knows when we are just babbling and when we are really sharing the desires of our hearts. BUT (and here's the kicker) we can't rest on that. We can't say, "God knows I WANT to spend more time with Him so it's ok if I keep this same routine and keep giving Him the last five minutes of my day or one hour on Sunday."
From Mark 2: 22, "Likewise, no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the skins are ruined. Rather, new wine is poured into fresh wineskins." When we feel the Holy Spirit inspiring us to go deeper or devote ourselves more fully to our faith, we can't continue the same habits and lifestyle.
Still, when I started singing along to "Here am I, Lord" I thought, "God is probably laughing at me and asking- Where are you?" My mind just happened to focus on the mass for that moment and I chose to participate, but seriously, was my heart really speaking the words my mouth was saying? Nope. Then I got to thinking about all the distractions we have in our lives and how even when I don't have two toddlers vying for my attention, I'm still a pretty sorry example of attentiveness.
Thankfully, God knows our hearts. He knows when we want more of Him but are pulled in two or three other directions. He knows when we are just babbling and when we are really sharing the desires of our hearts. BUT (and here's the kicker) we can't rest on that. We can't say, "God knows I WANT to spend more time with Him so it's ok if I keep this same routine and keep giving Him the last five minutes of my day or one hour on Sunday."
From Mark 2: 22, "Likewise, no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the skins are ruined. Rather, new wine is poured into fresh wineskins." When we feel the Holy Spirit inspiring us to go deeper or devote ourselves more fully to our faith, we can't continue the same habits and lifestyle.
The good
news - small changes can make a difference. Set that alarm 5 minutes earlier
(It's not going to kill you!) so you have a chance to start your day in prayer
or read the psalm for the day. Start praying before every meal, not just
dinner. Try to make it to daily mass one more time per month. Join in a Bible
study or download one onto your phone. If the wine is new on the inside, change
the skin on the outside! What one thing
can you do this week to make your actions match your heart?
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