There was an adage offered to students who attended the Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island, “it’s only a lot of reading if you do it.” Until one gets there and realizes that the weekly reading assignment was 800-1,000 pages of heavy reading. Once I experienced the truth of the adage, I realized the wisdom of doing enough to complete the writing assignment, and little else. Life became better and I became able to not let the compulsion to do everything get in the way of doing what I was supposed to do.
Our job as Christians is to enact the promises given by God – that God’s grace is sufficient for us to do what God calls us to do. One challenge I find is figuring out which of the tasks I feel I am called to undertake are my job to complete. The realist in me knows a person can do more than they imagine, but that achievement might come at a cost. Our job in doing God’s work includes finding others who have been given God’s grace to do their part in our vision of God’s call for our church.
God has given us the ability to reflect, both on ourselves and our community, to discern how we are doing as we fulfill God’s call. Our reflection may lead us to cede some of the things “We’ve always done” to others who can do them better (or differently) than we do. Our challenge can be amplified by trusting that we can do more, often by doing less ourselves and more with others. Our mission is to do enough to do our part while empowering others to do their part. Who is that in your life?
Blessings, Fr. Les+
