Living the Will of God

INTRODUCTION

How do we know God’s will and how do we put it into practice? It is manifested in daily events, even unexpected ones, which require a sense of faith that sees everything we do as acts of love.

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Let us look up to Jesus and Mary as our perfect role models in doing the will of the Father. As Jesus suffered in the garden, He cried “Not my will but your will be done.” In the Annunciation after the angel told Mary that she would conceive a son, she replied “Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it done unto me according to your Word.”

For Chiara Lubich, God’s will is like the rays of the sun. Each one of us walks along a ray distinct from the ray of the person next to us. The closer the rays get to the sun, that is, the will of God, the closer they get to one another. For us too, the closer we come to God by doing the divine will, the closer we draw to each other, until we are all one.

How can we live the present moment well living the will of God? One is to make a “to do list” weekly and reviewing it “daily.” This has to be done without stress and without hurry. In my case before doing the list I say a brief prayer to the Holy Spirit for guidance. Then I prioritize the list according to what God wills for me every hour of the day.  I also check for balanced time among family, work and rest. Then calmly I try to do every task with focused attention and with completion.

There are times when a co-employee or a phone call interrupts my task.  Quickly I detach from the task and see Jesus in the person who needs attention. Then I go back to the task at hand.  Often I am not able to complete everything as planned. This situation I also recognize as God’s will for me.

One day I met an accident with fractures that disabled me from working for close to a year.  With my husband we saw in unity, considering my growing children, that my hectic media job no longer was the will of God for me. We prayed for enlightenment. It was difficult letting go.  One day, knowing God’s love I was hired as a full time organization development consultant of a leading company totally shifting careers.

Saying my yes to the unexpected will of God has given me much joy and fulfillment the past 30 years.   God also gifted me with a weekly column in a national newspaper keeping alive my original media profession on the side. It has also enabled me time to living community life with zest and enthusiasm.

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