To England and Back

Hi all,

After finishing my first year, I took some time for rest. Rest is an important aspect of our lives. It gives us a chance to take a moment and reflect about God, think about how He is at work in our lives and thank Him for the many blessings He bestows.

St. Augustine in his Confessions writes, “our hearts are restless until they rest in you, O Lord”. This is truly the mind of the Church: our rest is found only in the Lord. Granted, sometimes we need to get away from our ordinary surroundings in order to find this rest, but we shall always find rest in Him.

In the Acts of the Apostles we read, “they devoted themselves to the teaching of the apostles and to the communal life, to the breaking of the bread and to the prayers…Every day they devoted themselves to meeting together…praising God and enjoying favor with all the people”(cf. 2:42). The early Church was constantly in prayer and community, working with each other and taking time to pray each and every day. They never grew weary of their prayers because their time with the Lord was what gave them their energy. Thus, rest serves us with the energy we need to continue to serve. Mother Teresa spent two hours a day in adoration before the blessed Sacrament prior to serving the poor. This two hours of communion with our Lord gave her the strength and courage to spread the love of God throughout the world in her little town of Calcutta. Indeed, when the Divine Love is manifested within us, we can affect change in the world!

Thus: prayer is rest. St. Hilary says that, “unless you are convinced that prayer is the best use of your time, you will never find time to pray”. Prayer is our connection with God, our communion in the Trinitarian life, and by this communion we are fully ourselves, filled with the power of the Holy Spirit. With this power we are given the strength to go out into the world. In HIM we find our Rest so that we may continue with our labors.

The Church’s liturgy of the Hours affords this to her priests, seminarians, and religious.
Five times a day we are called away from our work to recite the psalms, think about God and thank Him for the many blessings he bestows. By our prayers we are given new life, which strengthens our awareness of God at work, even in the little things of life! We become witnesses to the miracle of life at work. St. Padre Pio said that he is not a miracle worker, but a witness to the miracles God works in others; he simply points them out. Indeed, by our communion with God, we too will be able to point out the miracles of life in the most ordinary moments of our day.

A few recommendations: When we are busy at work, take just a second to offer a prayer for your co-workers, your employees, for the customers. Thank God for the gift of having work, for giving you the strength to carry out your work in love. Ask God for the grace needed to carry on when work becomes difficult. Ask Him for the gift of patience when we find it wearing thin. If we do this, we too will be “praying without ceasing” and our lives will be transformed.

Now, live vicariously through my pictures and enjoy the beauty of London!

Know of my constant prayers for all of you, and thanks for taking a moment of rest to read this, I hope it was helpful!

God Bless,
Nick

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