Monday, March 3, 2014

What's it all for?

 
 
We had an unexpected snow day called today. So we're all home and happily finding MUCH to keep us busy.  But, in a weird way, what a treat to be able to have extra time to get some of the household work accomplished without having to do it all in the evening. 
 
As yesterday's cold and snow didn't seem to be as bad as the weathermen predicted I really had no expectation at all for a snow day from school.  Those huge, beautiful snowflakes that fell most of the afternoon didn't accumulate into serious amounts of snow.  But as evening was setting in, there came the e-mails - school was off due to dangerous wind chills and anticipated snow throughout the night.  The kids were thrilled (high fiving, fist pumping- thrilled). Truthfully, so was I.
 
I went ahead and got up on time this morning at my usual waking time because I didn't want to totally break routine.  Since no one had to be out the door by any particular time, I let the kids sleep until 8:30. 
 
Translation - luxurious amounts of morning quiet!
 
I was enjoying it immensely but I noticed I wasn't inclined to pray as much as just sit there and piddle and mess with my calendar app.  I just felt like I needed some 'me time'.  Some unstructured, no demands time.
I kept trying to muster up my will to pray morning prayer but I kept finding one thing after another to stall myself.
 
As I became aware of some kind of force of laziness making me not want to pray, I said to myself that I would at least pray the morning offering and just leave it at that.  At least then, the Lord had been offered everything in my whole day as a prayer.
 
I went and poured one more cup of coffee.  I sat down and sipped at it and then resolved to set it down and prayed my morning offering.
 
Then I prayed the opening prayer (Glory Be) for morning prayer in the Magnificat.
 
Then I glanced at the morning hymn.  Beautiful.
Then I opened up my browser and played my new favorite sacred music - "Lent at Ephesus" from the Benedictines of Mary, Queen of Apostles.  I felt the 'force' of lazy selfishness begin to let go of me as a calm and prayerfulness began to replace it.
 
I finished morning prayer. Then I prayed for some special people and concerns.  I then prayed the ongoing novena I pray almost everyday.
 
Done.  Wow. I felt grounded as I went back to my calendar app and planned out the day. 
I was no longer wondering about the question that had popped into my head as I had begun perusing my calendar the 1st time... "Oh brother, what's all this work, demands, and constant service all for anyway?"  
 
It's all for God's greater glory when given to Him for that reason.  Sense of purpose restored. 
 
And it all started with a dutifully said Morning Offering.
Lesson learned.  God is good.

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