Keeping Busy in the Way that Refreshes

Note: On Fridays, you can find me at Your Daily Tripod, owned by my friend TonyD. A longer version of the post below appears there.

So often during Advent, we think about making time for everything: shopping. Wrapping. Cooking. Baking. Making dinner or plane or car rental reservations. It’s all about us, and our friends and family.

God, the very reason for the season, gets pushed to the bottom of the list except perhaps for weekly church attendance. And we don’t always pay much attention even when we’re there in body. Instead, we go through that dratted to-do list with a sigh. We can’t find downtime for ourselves, let alone for God.

Busyness was among the topics addressed in the recent pastoral letter on the New Evangelization from the Most Rev. Paul S. Loverde, Bishop of the Diocese of Arlington, Virginia. The bishop listed “Putting ‘Busyness’ Before Prayer” as one of the five biggest obstacles to evangelization in our diocese. Does any of this sound familiar?

 Practically speaking, we view prayer and other ways to increase our friendship with God as lower priorities. Stressed and overworked, we are more likely to prefer TV or browsing the Internet over prayer as a way to relax and re-charge in the little downtime we have. But these habits just numb us to our exhaustion and facilitate avoidance of our problems.

The only true refreshment, the bishop notes, comes from “He Who is the Author of Life.” His suggestion is surprisingly and beautifully simple. It doesn’t involve getting a different job or giving up all your holiday plans. Rather, Bishop Loverde suggests modes of evangelization that both ignite and refresh: talk about the day’s events over dinner with your children. Pray together. Take in a concert, sporting event, or parish gathering with friends. He challenges us to ask: “Is the fire of a living relationship with Jesus and His Church filling my home with light and warmth?”

God doesn’t expect us not to be busy. In fact, we should be busy—bringing souls to the kingdom. And that’s the sort of busyness that refills rather that depletes our spirits.