Lately, I’ve been too preoccupied with much work, and it hurts my heart. It’s difficult when we’re always on the go and we don’t have the time to pause and reflect on where we’re going. To check if we are still on the right path.
“An unexamined life is not worth living,” Socrates reminds us. It’s really when we take time to reflect on things that we can make sense of our lives, and hear what God is teaching us, where He is leading us.
Next Wednesday (March 1) is the beginning of Lent. I am looking forward to this time of walking more closely with God, to spending more time with Him. I want to be more attuned to His will again.
I realized that we can get very busy but totally miss the point of what God wants us to do. We can even be busy with good activities, but they distract us from what we should be doing. I realized that it is important to say no to many things that take our time away from the things we are called to do. Those things that we must do, that cannot be delegated to others. It is important to say no, so that we can say yes to the things God wants us to focus on.
Would you join me in recommitting to prayer and reassessing our priorities to make time for the important things in our lives? I really hope we would be right on target with what God wants us to do this year. In the original language of the Bible, the word for sin meant “to miss a mark” or a target. When we miss the point of what God wants for us, we feel something is wrong deep within our souls. Our spirit may feel restless or not at peace. To be on point, and on target, is to know God’s will and to obey it. This entails a time for prayer and reflection, a time to listen to God’s voice in our hearts.
We are called to live a meaningful life. But a meaningful life is a life that is reflected on. Only when we take time to reflect on our days will we be able to catch our mistakes and not repeat them. We will not be running around in circles. Only when we reflect will we be able to hear the still small voice of God in our hearts telling us where we should go, what we should do, and what we should focus on. A scattered life will not make much difference, only one that is laser-focused will make a dent.
I know we want to make a difference in this world. And so, we need to take the time to reflect on what we should be doing first. To set our priorities straight. To let God lead us to the right path.
Let’s find time to reflect amidst our busy schedules. We need times of silence, in order to listen again to the stirrings in our soul. I believe this time of reflection will save us from a lot of unnecessary pain and direct our efforts to the right path that will bring fullness of life. Let us make time for reflection this coming Lenten season. Our life, our truest selves, depend on it.
Pearl of Truth:
“Let us examine our ways and test them, and let us return to the Lord.” — Lamentations 3:40
