Saturday, March 9, 2019

Be Still: Shut Up, Sit Down and Listen

   As Lent brings us the time to slow down (hopefully) and look at our lives (crazy as they are) the goal is to see where we are headed (to heaven, I hope), what we are doing and how our faith is weaving itself in and out of our daily lives.
   But sometimes instead of seeing, we get blinded, instead of hearing, our senses get overwhelmed with too many good things. Have you ever felt like there may be just too many Catholic devotions out there?  Do you feel paralyzed by feeling you should be going to daily Mass, saying a rosary three times a day, the Angelus whenever the bells ring, going to adoration, praying the  Liturgy of the Hours five times a day, Divine Mercy at 3 and venerating the relics in church?
  While we hear a lot about how many Catholics aren't participating even in weekly Mass, we may be some of the people feeling like we are Catholic slouches when we don't do ALL the devotions that are out there.  And everyone has their favorite and if they are on social media, or leaders in your parish, they greatly encourage those devotions for everyone.  Of course we all have good intentions for doing this. We all just want to save souls. And individual devotions can help us see God at work in our lives.  But sometimes it is so overwhelming you can't help but feel you have no time for just listening to God because you are worried about getting in another rosary today.
   Psalm 46 reminds us that even too much of a good thing is too much.  Stopping to be quiet, turning off the noise both outside of ourselves and inside our heads (and hearts) and taking a deep breath helps us realize God doesn't need all our prayers, cajoling, petitions, pleadings and begging. He just needs us. He needs us to just stop, look around at what He has given us and be grateful.   He wants us to stop worrying about a family member or friend who is ill or another who is struggling with hurts. He wants us to let go of those worries, petitions and concerns because He is already very aware of who we are and who we are worried about.  All He wants is us. Our attention. Because when we give Him our full attention, He can fill us with peace. He fills us with so much love we almost stagger under its weight.
   Devotions are beautiful and praying the Rosary helps me slow down and really meditate, but what we need to remember is what they are supposed to do for us. They are not there to fill our every thought and minute of the day, they are supposed to lead us to listening, to being still and remembering God is in charge. They should help us relax, let go of our worries, let God take them over.  They should allow God to just fill our heads, to just be quiet, to thank Him for what we see around us. And we cannot do that if we are filling up our heads with noise, with too many words.  So pick one or two things to do for Lent and keep things simple. Really think about and participate in the one or two things you have chosen and let them help you feel God's presence.
  First, you must be still.  Sit down. Shut up. Listen.  For HE IS GOD.

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