Yesterday was a day for multi-tasking.
I had to prepare and meet with a client at work, then work on multiple projects while there, then drive home to take my mom to a doctor’s appointment, then drive back to the same town I work in to take her to the doctor’s appointment, then get back home to work on some home projects, before ending my day as quickly as it started.
And throughout this entire day…I kept a smile on my face, and peace in my soul.
Are you serious?
Yes. I am.
Now, before you become too impressed, I have to fully admit, this isn’t a normal reaction for me. Most of the time multi-tasking has been something that has caused me a lot of stress. I usually end up anxious, moody and some times even a bit snappish with people.
But yesterday was different, because I took a different approach. I started my day with an awareness that the day was looking to be very busy, so I prayed to God early for help.
Not only did I pray for help that morning, but I prayed to God that He would help me to be in union with Him, in whatever happened that day, good or bad. And He answered my prayer.
Even though it was a very busy, hectic day – I remained calm.
I didn’t worry about my meeting. I simply spoke when I had questions, or when I felt I needed to offer my opinion. I felt no pressure to speak to impress others, or to give the other people in the meeting the impression that I knew more than I did.
On all of my car rides to and from work and the doctor, I never felt the need to rush anywhere. I let people drive the way they wanted to drive, and I just flowed with the traffic, no matter how fast, or congested it was.
Prayer for Our Everyday Lives
I’ve been praying for years – twelve to be exact – since I converted to Catholicism, from being an agnostic. But for most of my post-conversion years my prayers were usually limited to special intentions, friends and family that were sick or in hard times, or for world situations.
But rarely have I prayed for my day-to-day life. Praying for my normal tasks, normal duties – things that come with every day. And by neglecting this, I’ve realized that I have limited God’s potential in my life.
It’s only recently that I’m learning to include God in my daily activities.
In every decision.
In every action.
In every thing I do.
When we are stressed out or feeling anxious, it’s mostly because we want to be somewhere at a certain time, or want something to happen the way we want it to happen. We desire other people to be (or drive, or talk, or react) the way we want them to, and are stressed when they simply don’t comply. And many (if not most) of these stresses we feel are entirely self-created.
We create our own anxiety. And we think we have the solutions to solve our own day-to-day problems.
Allowing God into Our Lives through Prayer and Faith
It’s only when we turn our problems and our daily tasks and duties over to God, that we are able to gain peace. Because when we allow God into our daily lives, our interior peace is no longer disturbed by daily events that are not in our control.
When we pray and commend our day to God, asking for His help, it’s then that we become less attached to our own desires, and no longer complain when things are not going the way we wanted.
It’s when we pray and commend our day to God, asking for His help, that it feels so much more easy, and natural, to be kind and compassionate to others – even those whose actions and personalities are not in compliance with our desires for them.
It’s when we pray and commend our day to God, asking for His help, that we can deal with the stresses of our lives, instead of complaining about them or running away from them.
It’s when we pray and commend our day to God, asking for His help, that we can learn to give proper attention to every person and every duty in our lives, without giving them too much or too little.
Your desires will gradually become less focused on yourself and more focused on God and His desire for you. He will take care of all the details.
Daily Prayer and Faith
With a commitment to daily prayer, and faith in God that He will help us through our daily lives, we can become calm and peaceful in the midst of the raging flow around us that is called “life”.
Prayer and faith that God will answer our prayers.
These two things are essential.
When you have succeeded in giving yourself to God, without any reservation, then God will give Himself to you so completely that you’ll neither need nor desire your old ways of managing the stresses of this life.
Prayer.
Faith.
Editor’s note: This article originally appeared on Grow in Virtue and is reprinted here with kind permission.
image: futureGalore / Shutterstock.com
