Friday for the Fourth Week of Lent
Lent no go bear fruit unless we examine our conscience well. For di next seven days, we go guide you through this examination, to help you prepare for di beautiful Sacrament of Reconciliation wey dey cleanse us. One reason why plenty people dey avoid to examine their conscience na because of di first sin wey we go reflect on—laziness.
This kind laziness dey make us neglect our duties to God and other people. Person wey this laziness dey control dey choose comfort instead of discipline, rest instead of work, and lack of interest instead of seriousness for duty. This laziness dey lead to sadness for spiritual life, loss of hope, sluggishness, vexation, idleness, restlessness, wastefulness, and curiosity wey no holy. When laziness don turn to habit, di first thing wey person dey consider every day na to do wetin easy pass and wetin go give am di most comfort. For example, to spend too much time for social media fit lead person enter this laziness. Hard work, seriousness for duty, sense of responsibility, care for other people, and desire to make things better dey necessary to move person to break this bad habit.
Seriousness for duty (or zeal) na di virtue wey oppose laziness and cure am. E dey help us take responsibility for our daily duties and carry dem out as God want. To go di other extreme and become person wey no fit stop to work no be cure for laziness. Di virtue of seriousness for duty dey help us find di right balance for everything wey we dey do. E dey help us faithfully do wetin God call us to do with zeal, and avoid to let things wey dey cause stress and unnecessary burdens occupy our mind too much.
For how we relate with other people, love of God and neighbour go help cure laziness when we stop to focus on only wetin we prefer and begin look for ways to show love and care to people around us. Laziness dey make us look only at ourselves. Love dey help us look at other people and consider ways wey we fit make their lives better, even when this one require big sacrifice. We dey find joy inside that sacrifice.
For how we relate with God, laziness dey tempt us to avoid daily prayer. We fit reason say our prayers no dey work, or say we dey serve God through our actions, so our work don become our prayer. To remain faithful to daily prayer, and set time aside every day to do nothing else apart from prayer, dey very important. In fact, if you sit down to pray or kneel before our Lord and temptation come immediately to make you stop, to overcome that temptation go help cure laziness.
Laziness for spiritual life dey enter our lives when we no receive comfort from prayer, come lose courage and give up. When we first begin our prayer life, God often dey encourage us spiritually through comfort wey we fit feel as we meditate and understand spiritual things. But time go come when that comfort go dry up and we go feel empty inside. This experience fit confuse us and make us abandon our prayer life; na laziness for spiritual life be that. Our aim must be to continue faithfully through this spiritual dryness and no lose courage.
When Jesus dey die for di Cross, He cry out, “I dey thirst!” Maybe part of His thirst na thirst for body, because His body don lose water. But for di deeper meaning, Jesus dey thirst for every soul wey need His love. If we fit share Jesus’ thirst for di salvation of souls, including our own, then this spiritual thirst go move us to overcome every kind of laziness.
My Lord wey dey thirst, di burning desire for Your soul na to pour out Your mercy on everybody. As dem receive Your love, e satisfy Your Sacred Heart and move You to love even more. Abeg, fill my soul with Your divine thirst, first for di salvation of my own soul, and also for di good of di people wey You call me to serve. Make me serious for prayer and faithful to my duties for life. Jesus, na You I trust.
See also: Day Twenty-Seven: 40 Days for di Foot of di Cross