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We are all living at a great rate of knots and with Christmas on the horizon the pace will become even more chaotic, writes Father Declan Boland.
Our daily lives are hectic, full of noise, information overload and we are constantly on the screen forever scrolling – we are literally at times in a daze. So much to do, see and experience and seemingly so little time available. No wonder people look stressed out and anxious.
How can we prevent ourselves from becoming robot-like, always reacting to the next stimulus, thrill or adventure? Remember that Jesus told us that the kingdom of God is within (Luke 17:21), so in order to get off the merry-go- round, we are invited to make the journey within, deep down into the very core of who we are, where Christ resides. It is the most wonderful and at the same time, the most demanding spiritual journey.
I encourage you to practice mindfulness. Mindfulness is the heart and starting point on the spiritual path. It is also called the sacrament of the present moment. Leading a life of mindfulness means that you have come to the realisation that God and true peace can only be experienced in the here and now. It seems so obvious yet we are either living in the past or projecting into the future that we miss the grace of the present moment and indeed the experience of God.
In essence we don’t have to do anything extraordinary on the spiritual path but try to become one with the present moment and do fully whatever we can do. In this practice, we realise that we are really not present most of the time but are caught up in past memories or future plans. However life only takes place in the present moment. The practice of mindfulness always leads us back to the present moment and helps us enter the very depths of our being.
In our Christian contemplative tradition, we hear of the transforming power of the now, calling it as stated above, “the sacrament of the present moment.” Everything else flows from this. The Christian mystic Jean-Pierre de Caussade wrote: “God is always present, yet you search for him elsewhere. Eveything around you speaks of the divine. Everything in you is God’s gift. He walks beside you. He sustains you. He works through you and stays with you at this very moment, yet you search for him. You chase after perfection even though it now lies within you, and you need not search for it. You encounter God everywhere, in your suffering, in your actions and desires, and yet you invest much vain effort in high-flown thoughts that bear no relation to God.”
Every moment of our lives involves our communion with the primary source of everything which we call God. Mindfulness is the ability to be fully aware in all that we do. The fountain of life bubbles to the surface in all things; it flows uninterrupted through the present moment. Everything in the here and now is soaked through with God’s presence and his grace. Conscious breathing can help us stay in the present moment. There are countless opportunities to do this: When waiting at the bus stop, standing in a queue at the supermarket, or waiting in the doctor’s surgery.
Even the most ordinary actions, like walking upstairs, opening the door, washing our hands or waiting at the traffic lights, can be of great significance if done with alertness. When these activities are accompanied by inner awareness, they become spiritual exercises. Life offers many opportunities to be fully conscious in the now, no matter what you are doing. It takes a long time before we can grasp that God’s divine presence is expressed and present in the simplest things of life. We don’t have to shave our heads, go off to the desert, perform spiritual gymnastics or heroic feats.
Stop for a moment. What are you chasing? God lies deep within. The present moment is always new and fresh. It is a wide-open gate leading into the depths of God. Prayer is really the endless delicacy of opening up to the presence of God right now in this moment. So find that spiritual practice (meditation, the Jesus prayer, scripture reading, rosary, bodily exercises, relaxation exercises, breath exercises, energy centre exercises, detox exercises, gardening, painting, and a host of other wonderful body and heart exercises that are available today) that reduce the obstacles and help you to come into the present moment where you are overtaken by the power of love living deep within you.
When we are one with God the Source, in the present moment, then we can act as a source by making everything we have received flow out again to others – just like Jesus.
Our appointment with life is in this present moment. The place of our appointment is right here, in this very place.
