Energy Crisis

It seems that in our world, many people have forgotten how to rest properly. There seems to be a personal energy crisis today. We don't seem to have enough time and energy to do all the things we think we should be doing. Not only are we not resting enough physically, there are clear signs that we have forgotten what it means to rest in God. What is more, these two realities are strongly connected to each other. The person who is physically exhausted is going to find it difficult, if not impossible, to rest in the heart of God.

Small but Beautiful

Our psalm today is one of the shortest, yet most beautiful of all the psalms. Normally, we only have a few verses of a psalm, but today we have the complete text of the psalm. The image we are given is one of tenderness, peace, and utter contentment: "...I have stilled and quieted my soul like a weaned child. Like a weaned child on its mother's lap, So is my soul within me."

This is truly a picture of peace and tranquility. Just the hearing of those words can give us a desire for that kind of total rest and peace that a person often finds in the quiet presence of one who loves them. There are few things more calming than seeing a child asleep in its mother's arms.

And how did the psalmist come to that place of rest? He tells us that he refused to spend his time and energy seeking greatness or being occupied with things that are beyond him. He knows who he is. He knows his limits. He knows he is not God.

Disturbing the Peace

There are certain things, which fight against such peace. By and large, we are too busy, too distracted and too restless. We place such a high value on work and efficiency that for many people their life is their work. The little time they have off of work is spent taking care of their home, or thinking about their work, or resting just barely enough so that they can go back to work. We seem to be working more hours rather than less. And if we're not working, we're running the kids around to a hundred different activities.

And we are much too distracted. It seems that we need to be amused every waking hour of our lives. Television has claimed more hours of our lives than we care to think about. Casinos, shows, shopping malls, and entertainments of every possible sort have a much higher place in our lives than prayer, or quiet reflection and reading. We have grown uncomfortable with silence and are restless when we don't have anything that will keep us amused.

Choices for Life

The simple fact of the matter is that it's very difficult to live with any kind of real self-awareness and God-awareness in the midst of all of our frantic and distracting activities. A good part of the humility that Jesus is urging on us is the recognition that we can't be everywhere and do everything. Each of us has only so much energy and so much time. Doing one thing means not doing another thing.

The Lord's Day

The first step towards moving to a place of humility and peace is to slow down long enough to let the busyness and restlessness move to one side. God knew that we so needed a time of rest that God actually commanded us to rest. The third commandment tells us: Keep holy the Lord's Day.

The Catholic Catechism gives us clear directions about how we should treat Sundays. "On Sundays and other holy days of obligation, the faithful are to refrain from engaging in work or activities that hinder the worship owed to God, the joy proper to the Lord's Day, the performance of the works of mercy, and the appropriate relaxation of mind and body" (par. 2185).

I don't think it would be exaggerating the point to say that Sunday, as a day of rest, has become an endangered species. By and large, we are ignoring one of the sacred Ten Commandments. And we are suffering because of it. We were not created to live frantic, overly busy, stress-filled lives. We need regular times of rest, proper leisure and time for prayer and reflection.

We need to reclaim Sunday as the gift it was meant to be. One way to start this process would be to look over our past few Sundays to see how we have been spending them. What changes do we need to make so that Sunday will become a time we look forward to: a time of refreshment, rest, reflection, a time to be with family and friends in a relaxed and supportive atmosphere? This is no small task. I pray that we make the choice to reclaim Sunday, our day of rest, as a serious but beautiful obligation.