God's Will, Just Do It!

Our Ark Spiritual Directors Article

“For whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.” Mark 3:35

How many times a day do we say “thy will be done”?

How many times a day are we consciously doing God’s will? God’s will isn’t “out there somewhere”.

It is right in front of us most days if we are open to seeing it. Often, we don’t have our eyes open to see what God wants us to do. We are looking past what is right in front of us. We look past what God wants us to do thinking that we have no talent to do anything; or that God’s will is some great task or that we have to do a lot of research, prayer and discernment before we can determine God’s will for us.

Most often, it is right in front of us. God’s will is to love others. Love isn’t feelings of tenderness. It is patience, kindness, not being rude, etc.

After Fr. Walter Ciszek reflected on the Our Father and realized that he was not doing God’s will but what he thought God wanted him to do, it changed his life. A story is told of him vigorously digging a ditch in the winter in a Siberian labor camp while the other prisoners did as little as they could. A fellow prisoner asked why he was working so hard. Fr. Ciszek responded that he gave his life to God and wherever he is, must be where God wants him to be and whatever he is supposed to do must be what God wants him to do. God must want him to dig the ditch, so- he must do it to the best of his ability because he is doing it for God.

The child, spouse, neighbor, parishioner, stranger right in front of you wanting you to do something; is what God wants you to do. The opportunity to do something for someone at church, in the community, in your own home, is what God wants you to do. Just do it.

Deacon Andy Mcmahon