July 2009

Therefore prepare your minds for action; discipline yourselves; set all your hope on the grace that Jesus Christ will bring you when he is revealed.  Like obedient children, do not be conformed to the desires that you formerly had in ignorance.  Instead, as he who called you is holy, be holy yourselves in all your conduct; for it is written, "You shall be holy, for I am holy." (1 Peter 1.13-16)

Prepare your minds and discipline yourselves so that you may be holy as Jesus Christ is holy.  I am humbled by the expectation of that instruction – that our goal in life is to somehow be holy as Jesus is holy.  Attaining a life that I would consider “holy” just does not seem to be a realistic possibility to me.  How could we sinners of the world ever come close to the holiness of Jesus’ life?  And if we are bound to fall short, what then do we make of Peter’s exhortation?  Maybe the key is to place our hope on the grace that Jesus Christ is yet to bring.  In other words, we strive for holiness in this life, understanding that its perfection only comes when we ultimately meet our Savior.  And according to Peter, striving for holiness requires discipline of mind and body and a willingness to be different than the world.  Therefore holiness and worldliness must be at opposite poles in our beings.  If we are caught up in the things of the world and more worried about our tasks of the day than we are about our ultimate salvation, then holiness will always be out of reach.

The notion of self discipline and striving for holiness reminds me of the prayer that is in the front of our Forward Day By Day devotionals.  Every quarter, they begin with the following “Morning Resolve” on the inside cover:

I will try this day to live a simple, sincere, and serene life, repelling promptly every thought of discontent, anxiety, discouragement, impurity, and self-seeking; cultivating cheerfulness, magnanimity, charity, and the habit of holy silence; exercising economy in expenditure, generosity in giving, carefulness in conversation, diligence in appointed service, fidelity to every trust, and a childlike faith in God.

In particular I will try to be faithful in those habits of prayer, work, study, physical exercise, eating and sleep which I believe the Holy Spirit has shown me to be right.  And as I cannot in my own strength do this, nor even with a hope of success attempt it, I look to thee, O Lord God my Father, in Jesus my savior, and ask for the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Yours in Christ,

Fr. Paul+