Silence

Yesterday I came upon something which struck me as so self-evidently true that I sort of wondered why I haven’t done something about it.

I’m taking the quote out of context, but not much.

Prayer presents difficulties today, difficulties which maybe [were not so much present] in the past, in a time in which the rhythm of life was a bit more human, and there was not so much stress, not so much noise, maybe [then] prayer, recollection, concentration, thinking, elevating one’s mind towards God were much easier. Today in a world as busy as ours, prayer becomes certainly more difficult. We must emphasize the absolute necessity of prayer… (Franc Cardinal Rodé, C.M., Prefect of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life)

It’s all about the noise. I’m reminded of 1 Kings 19:11-12, where Elijah does not find God in the earthquake or the storm, but in the still, small breeze.

We find God in silence, when we have time to think and to pray.

I know this. I’ve written here about this in the past. But I get so caught up the noise of every day, the busy and the bustle and the hubbub, that everything of importance flees my mind.

I’m out of the home for 13 hours every day, and I’m exhausted when I get home.

I know I need to change the rhythm of my life from the rhythm of the machine to the rhythm of the human. I’m just too exhausted to figure out how to do it.