More Than A Spare
“Is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tire?” ~ Corrie Ten Boom
There have been many people who have asked me, beginning about two months before my retirement, what I was going to do once I retired. Did I have any plans? Did I feel comfortable with the idea or was I nervous or even frightened?
Well, let me answer you.
What am I going to do? I have no idea what the days, weeks, months, or years have in store for me. I do know one thing. I am going to practice what I preached all these years. I am going to begin my retirement with prayer.
Beginning anything in prayer is vitally important because prayer keeps us focused on our ultimate goal. When we fail to begin with prayer, we more easily become distracted. And distraction is the devil’s opportunity to make a crack in our faith. The more distracted, the further we may drift from God.
So, how am I going to begin my retirement with prayer, you ask? Quite simple. I am leaving today for my annual private retreat. Canon law dictates that all religious — priests, deacons, brothers, and sisters — make a retreat each year. I have chosen, more often than not, to make a private retreat. The diocese has an annual retreat that priests can attend but those often felt more like social events to me and I want to be able to take time to be with the Lord. If I want to socialize, I can do that any day. But to take a quality chunk of time with the Lord? I do that on my private retreat.
Where? Well, I generally go to St. Meinrad Archabbey in Southern Indiana. I guess you can say I “return to the scene of the crime” since that is where I began my seminary formation. 🙂 I usually go with a priest friend. Once we get to the retreat house and check into our rooms, we do our own thing. I might see him at prayers or Mass at the Archabbey Church and I might see him at breakfast or lunch. But we are taking our own time with the Lord so we don’t have a lot of interaction. We do take a break from our solitude by going to dinner together. That is a time to socialize as well as to discuss spiritual matters. When we return from dinner, we’re on our own again. I find that has worked for me for many years.
This year, as usual, I will pray for our bishop and for my brother priests. I will also pray for the parishioners I have served for my years as a priest. I will also ask God to steer me in the direction He wants me to go in my retirement. Beginning my retirement with this week of intense prayer is most important to me.
FAITH ACTION: If you do not already do so, make an attempt to begin your day with prayer. Make it a habit and see where it takes you.