Christian Communication

Christ came to earth with a specific mission:  the God-made man would die for our sins to save us.  Not only the divine have an earthly mission; we all do.  Attending a silent retreat zones us in on the unique mission God has for each of us.

I was amazed by my lack of resistance to the directive that I need to beef up my prayer life to keep up with my mission, which involves an active life of apostolate at home, work,  and in my parish.  I carved out an additional twenty minutes in the morning to spend with the Lord.

In prayer we communicate with God, building our friendship with Him.  In my past abbreviated prayer routine, I did a lot of talking.  When it was God’s turn to speak, it was time for me to run to the next activity.  As I became more polite, I started listening, letting God get a word in.  And what do you think he said first?

“Depend on me and on others.”

Strong words to a hyper-independent gal like me.  But well received as my overly responsible, it’s-easier-to-do-it-myself standard operating procedure often left me overloaded, not a place my God wants me to be.

I am responding by better including the kids in fulfilling family responsibilities, collaborating with my husband on issues needing to be addressed, and inviting those at the church and school to join me in my service projects with better communication.

My spiritual director was actually quite diplomatic when he recommended that I “pray more”.  Because “praying more” for me translated more accurately into “listening more”.

The Catholic Women’s Guide to Healthy Relationships Tip:  Be a good friend to God by making sure there’s time to listen to Him.