Linda - November 13, 2022 - I believe that all of us - to some degree - long to do great deeds for God in some kind of apostolic or charitable work, to be known for some outstanding work of mercy, or for our ability to move in the charisms of the Holy Spirit.  There is nothing wrong with having these great and burning desires because they do impel us forward.  However, this quotation from The Imitation of Mary reminds us that in order to become holy, the greatest way of obtaining our goal is in the humble, little things that make up our daily lives...often all the "routine" stuff.

 

Since most of us are in the first 3 mansions of the purgative way, the main way of becoming holy at this point is by establishing a daily prayer time and by fulfilling the duties of our state in life.  The great masters of the spiritual life are quite unanimous in saying so. 

 

It isn't ministry that makes us holy, nor the number of years that we've been "in the Lord" or the number of years we've spent in apostolic work in our parishes.  In this beginner stage, the main goal is to love God, pray daily, frequent the sacraments and with great love, do all those "little things" that are part and parcel of our daily lives, with as much love for the Lord and for our neighbour as we can muster.  

 

Most of us are called to serve within the body of Christ, but this service is not the standard by which we evaluate ourselves.  The standard has always been and will always be our intimacy with God and our humility in accomplishing all those necessary daily tasks that make up most of our daily lives. There really is a deep mystery to the hidden life of Nazareth that Joseph, Mary and Jesus lived.