Making the Time to Sit with God

AnnAliese Harry ponders how making time for God has helped her prioritize her time in relation to her vocation as mother.

Time is something of which we never seem to have enough. The months, weeks, days, and hours seem to slip by with frightening speed, and too often we have the tendency to try to rush to fit “everything” into an already-packed schedule.

Not too long ago, I declined an activity after some period of reflection and discernment. With God’s comfort on my heart, I gave a “holy no,” indicating that while I would like to say yes, I recognized I can only juggle so many things successfully.

A priest-chaplain of ours once gave some sage advice, “No matter what you undertake, whether it is paid or volunteer, anything outside the home should enhance your primary vocation as a wife, and your secondary vocation as a mother. If your vocation and avocation are not being enhanced, then rethink the commitments you have made.”

That counsel has provided me many moments of prayer in the years since and helps me determine when it is time for me to step back and recognize where my energy and effort is spent.

Time, an already precious commodity, doesn’t always work to our benefit.

Yet, as I studied my free time, I have found by giving up one commitment, and restructuring my other commitments, I realized time can work to our benefit.

Years back, I noticed when I took the “time” out of my week to prioritize weekend Mass, I found other parts of the week fell into place. Even if I had a deadline looming, when I took the time to spend a little quality time with the Lord, I found myself energized to do what I needed to meet the deadline. I have since become a firm believer that when I prioritize God, He helps me make my deadlines by making time slow down.

The secular person would be skeptical of that claim. But I firmly believe God multiplies time, over and over again, as we prioritize His needs.

AnnAliese Harry ponders how making time for God gives her time for everything else. #CatholicMom

Perhaps it comes with being an “older” mother, but as I contemplated time this past week, I realized creating time to put God first, and my family second, has given me the opportunity to bask in the little moments: watching children receive awards, encouraging the newfound steps of a wobbly almost-toddler, and making the treats that meet the restrictive dietary needs of my husband.

If I cram too much into my life, I run the risk of doing nothing more than spinning my wheels from one task to the next. There is no room to breathe.

It is in the breath that God comes to us and sits with us.

He wants us to make our vocation and secondary vocations a priority because through those we get the most intimate opportunity to live according to His will, rather than our own.

As we enter the Month of the Holy Souls, take an accurate assessment of your time. How can you build-in time to be intentional with our Lord?

How could you better serve the Lord through your vocation/s with more time?

Appreciating time doesn’t exactly multiply on the clock, how can you serve the Lord better through your vocation/s?

In turn, how can you offer your time in praying for our Holy Souls in Purgatory this month?

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