A few years ago I felt my relationship with God was kind of “meh” so I asked a priest I knew, Father Chris, for advice. “Are you attending mass every day?” Father Chris asked. Keep in mind, I worked at a church that offered mass twice a day. All I had to do was walk next door. “Well,” I sighed, “sometimes. But 12:15 mass is right in the middle of the day and sometimes I forget in the middle of work.” “Why not go to the 7:30 a.m. mass, before the workday begins?” he countered. “Oh, Father, that’s so early!” I protested. “Then go to bed earlier” (this guy was full of answers). “But I get home and like to relax and watch some T.V. and stuff.”I replied. Father Chris looked at me with what I now realize was exasperation and said, “Well, come back and talk to me when holiness is more important to you than television.” Oh. #TheStruggle for Holiness Is Real People wince when I tell this story, but I’m so grateful Father Chris said what he said to me. I was irritated at first (how dare Father tell me I can’t get holy watching TV?), but later that night when I flipped on the “Letterman,” his statement was ringing in my ears. Did I want holiness more than television? If I did, I wasn’t acting like it. Sighing, I turned off the T.V. and set my alarm clock. It wasn’t easy getting up that first morning and to this day I still struggle with getting myself out the door and into the pew in time for the opening hymn. But for years I have attended mass almost every day, because my struggle for holiness is more important than television or literally anything else. This summer lots of you attended camps and conferences and experienced God challenging you to follow him in a new way—to pursue holiness with a greater fervor. Surrounded by your friends in a place where everyone was striving for sainthood, accepting the challenge seemed easy. “I’ll do anything you ask me to!” you prayed. For a few weeks, you gave it all you had. Then school started and your volleyball coach posted the schedule and the district tournament is the same weekend as your youth group’s fall retreat. Or you’re taking A.P. courses and you find that you have so much homework on Sunday, you forget to attend mass. Your bible study meets on the same night as your glee club, and your club is on the road to sectionals. The pressure is on. Volleyball, A.P. classes, Glee club and whatever else you’re trying to balance– these are not bad things. But I’m going to be brutally honest with you, just like Father Chris was with me all those years ago. You will not grow in holiness if you put Christ second to anything. Heaven is Most Important Harsh? Maybe. But you need to hear this because your volleyball coach, glee club president […]
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