How long can you go without prayer until you notice it? Like a lack of vitamins or exercise, we don’t notice the absence right away, but give it some time and a kind of poverty will set in. It takes decades to see the failures of an education system. It takes years to see fault lines in a marriage or in a friendship. In the same way, a week without the sacraments? You might not notice anything remarkable. But avoid them wilfully for a time and watch your desire to grow spiritually shrivel up.
If you are an artist and you are spending inordinate amounts of your free time scrolling social media or frequenting favourite rabbit holes online, over time it will certainly happen: your creativity will be stunted. We are using our limited energy on things that do not restore, refresh, or inspire. We are using our finite brain power on things that do not enrich our health and well-being. It is no surprise that burn-out is so widespread. Where is our energy going?
We often mistake feeling entertained for feeling at peace. The former requires energy and attention from us. The latter requires repose and recreation (or re-creation). When we re-create, we feel restored and replenished. When we scroll, we feel decision fatigue more acutely because we are consuming and assessing vast amounts of input from other people’s heads. If we choose “entertainment” over rest for one day, we might not feel it. But day after day, we see the result on a societal level. So many of us claim exhaustion. We have forgotten what it is to rest.
We may not notice a quiet deviation from the path when we miss a couple of days of exercise or eating well, but that doesn’t mean it’s not happening. The hardest part about missing the mark with our prayer lives is that not only did we miss the prayer time itself that day and the difficulty of getting back to our routine the next day, but we also miss out on time we could have experienced in a more “awake” state. Likewise, when we put off going to confession. It is tempting to say we are only hurting ourselves, but in reality we are hurting ourselves and our neighbour through the omission of good works. And then there is our thirsting Jesus to consider. He thirsts for our yes. He thirsts for our wholehearted commitment. He thirsts for our love.
When we abide in Jesus through prayer and the sacraments, everything comes easier. Forgiveness is quicker. Our words are softer (and yes, even more humble if we are really praying and really seeking, not faking it). We listen more soulfully to what people are saying and how they are saying it.
This is the part of the Christian life that we don’t talk about enough. We don’t pray out of duty, primarily – although you could call the expression of gratitude a duty where it is required – but when we don’t pray, we miss out on adventure. If ever there were a place for FOMO (fear of missing out), it’s in the spiritual life. We miss out on shedding guilt and regret sooner. We miss out clearer insight into our problems. Instead, we fumble in the dark. Not only do we miss living on a higher plane, so to speak, but everyone around us misses out on experiencing our intense “us-ness.” When we pray and use our time wisely, we are better people, and we make people better by our presence.
Of course, Jesus is always one leap away. We can mentally tie things up in a neat little theological package and breathe a sigh of relief. Thank goodness God is mercy and love! Thank goodness I can run into his open arms at any time, and he will receive me! These things are all true. But equally true is that there is no time to lose. For us, dear Christians, the time for excuses has come to an end. To quote St. Catherine of Siena: “if you are what you should be, you will set the world ablaze.”
