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Practicing Humility
"Deep within you, there is a constant drive to make your daily performance a satisfying experience... [but] though you know logically what to do, or how to act, you find yourself, often enough, doing or acting quite the contrary. Consequently, you cannot avoid some feelings of disappointment, discouragement, guilt or anger, as you go about your daily routine...
The basic virtue which you need for a healthy adjustment to life is the virtue of humility. It disposes you to be realistic - to see things as they are and live life as reasonably as you are able in your present circumstances. It is far better to improve a small but real situation, than to perform great deeds in mere wishful imagination."
Fr Anthony J. Paone, in "My Daily Life", NY, Confraternity of the Precious Blood, 1970, p174-175, 182
posted by Holly at 10:36 AM
1 Comments:
Humility - the ability to see things as they really are - the good and the bad - in our lives and in our persons. This is reality. This is the virtue upon which all others rest.
And the reality is that none of us, no matter how perfect or imperfect we think we are, are completely self-mastered, completely in control of every part of our lives. People like that live only in heaven.
Fr Paone stresses that we must realize we have limitations, and that these are not signs of sin necessarily, or a diminishment of our personal value, but that we are normal, still working our way toward heaven - learning oh-so-slowly how to be faithful to God and to what is best for us.
So, we start small. I got up this morning, looked around at a messy house, and realized it was because I didn't do much over the weekend. I didn't re-inforce the children's chores; I didn't do all my chores; I needed a break; and I was slothful. I started my prayer this morning and asked God to help me pull it together.
Then I got up, loaded the laundry, and felt a new strength (grace!). I walked the children through their chores, encouraged them and myself to get back on track, and we did.
Will I ever be free from effort? from pulling things back together? No. Am I perfect already ? No. But I don't have to mourn these things - I just need to say a prayer and start with what I 'can' do - and for me, that usually starts with laundry for some strange reason! :-)
You can do it - you can live a life as faithful to God as possible in any given moment. Just start with the next step. And when you fall, get up as soon as you can. Jesus knows all about this. He's the one, standing by the sidelines, cheering you on.
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