Resting in the Busyness of Life
Author: Father Cody Williams, Holy Cross Parish
Resting in the Busyness of Life
Father Cody Williams
Holy Cross Parish
How often do you hear this conversation? “Hey!” “Hey!” “How’s it going?” “Good, how about you?” “Good. How are things going?” “Busy. You?” “The same.” From my experience, most of us express the same basic concerns: life is stressful, life is busy, and it seems like we keep
trudging forward. Is this how life is supposed to be? How many of us are seeking some rest and rejuvenation in life? What does rest look like?
Before we can venture into rest and finding ways to rest, we need to be real with ourselves. Our lives have many demands and many of them feel like they cannot be ignored. We have
responsibilities at work, commitments at home, and many other activities that vie for our time. Can they be ignored? Not really. But the issue is not the amount of tasks we have, the limitations
on our time, or the challenges that life imposes. The real challenge is being real with our lives.
Often when we get overwhelmed by life and its responsibilities, we ponder important questions like “what am I doing wrong?” or “how do I manage my time better?” Oddly, finding rest and
rejuvenation is not about time management, it's about priorities and life management. How many of us prioritize rejuvenating hobbies, time with friends, or rest in our days? I’m guessing not
many of us. Instead, we settle for a TV program, movie, or some activity where we can “veg.” Veging is not resting. Veging is when we feel so overwhelmed that we don’t believe there is time for good, restful activities, so we settle for what is easy.
On Friday, Dec. 5th, we are hosting an event at the Lodge to help bridge the conversation about resting amidst the busyness of life. Some people from our community with talk about their
challenges and joy in finding rest with the hopes of inspiring us to appreciate and prioritize rest in our lives. The night starts at 6 pm with dinner and then we will discuss and explore the topic
of rest. May you all find time to rest and rejuvenate in the midst of this busy season.
