The Work of God Precedes and Exceeds Us

"Instead, action that stems from charity
introduces us in the work of God,
who precedes and exceeds us."
Father Massimo Camisasca

In these times, too many of us are too busy doing what WE PERCEIVE as God's work. We are too busy doing to sit and spend time with Him, to pray and to listen. The active life must be balanced with the contemplative life or else we burn out and fail to follow the desires of our Lord because we have not taken the time to hear him speaking to our hearts. It is in the silence that Elijah heard the still small voice of the Lord, not in the wind, the earthquake or the fire.

As Secular Franciscans, we also remember that we go from gospel to life and life to the gospel, embracing both the active and contemplative life and following the example of Saint Francis, who followed the footsteps of Jesus. From the gospel writings, we know that Jesus often withdrew to spend time alone, in silence and in prayer.

Below is a quote from a writing by Father Massimo Camisasca. These are words that all of us, not just priests, should consider. Father Camisasca writes:

"Today many priests lose themselves in action, in the infinite number of activities and preoccupations that entrap them. For the action of each one of us to always be a source of nourishment, it must be constantly redirected to our relationship with Christ. And the place of our relationship with Christ is prayer, inseparable from silence.

"Silence, prayer, reflection and study are the answer to one of the evils that afflict the figure of the priest: activism, which remains on the surface of things and absorbs the time of our energies and our feelings.

"Instead, action that stems from charity introduces us in the work of God, who precedes and exceeds us."


The Value of Silence.

Give Silence a Chance