How we spend our time can reveal what’s really important, not what we say is important. I’m referring to discretionary time, not time that’s committed to a job or studies. When we have “free” time, how do we spend it?

Smartphones can give a weekly report on how much time someone spends on which apps. Amazing! It used to be if we wanted to find out how much time was being spent on which priorities, we would set up a time sheet and record our activities every half hour of the workday. Now it’s all electronically recorded!

When discerning a call from God about what to do with our lives, this kind of electronic report might come in handy! We’d be able to see for ourselves how much time, especially quality time, we’re spending listening to God or listening to those important others in our lives who convey God’s message for our lives. Tuning in requires that we make time available to give our full our attention to what’s important. A good question to ask ourselves periodically is, “How am I spending my time, my life energy?”

May each of us have the grace to tune in to what’s really important,
Sister Tarianne

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Sintonizándose

Cómo pasamos nuestro tiempo puede revelar lo que es realmente importante, no lo que decimos que es importante. Me refiero al tiempo discrecional, no al tiempo comprometido con un trabajo o estudios. Cuando tenemos tiempo “libre”, ¿cómo lo pasamos?

Los teléfonos inteligentes pueden brindar un informe semanal sobre cuánto tiempo dedica alguien a qué aplicaciones. ¡Increíble! Antes, si queríamos saber cuánto tiempo se gastaba en qué prioridades, estableceríamos una hoja de tiempo y registraríamos nuestras actividades cada media hora del dia laboral. ¡Ahora todo está grabado electrónicamente!

Al discernir un llamado de Dios sobre qué hacer con nuestras vidas, ¡este tipo de informe electrónico podría ser útil! Podríamos ver por nosotros mismos cuánto tiempo, especialmente tiempo de calidad, pasamos escuchando a Dios o escuchando a otras personas importantes en nuestras vidas que transmiten el mensaje de Dios para nuestras vidas. La sintonización requiere que hagamos tiempo disponible para prestar toda nuestra atención a lo que es importante. Una buena pregunta que nos podemos hacer periódicamente es: "¿Cómo paso mi tiempo, mi energía vital?"

Que cada uno de nosotros tengamos la gracia de sintonizarnos a lo que es realmente importante,
Hermana Tarianne

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Our attention is bombarded from many sides: ads, podcasts, school courses, business priorities and deadlines, live streaming, texting, music, searching the internet, and listening to reminders pinging on our phones; and that’s just in our immediate surroundings. Often there are more things vying for our attention! As a result we may have gotten into the habit of reacting to the latest attention-grabber, instead of making free or conscious choices of how to spend our energy and where to invest our attention.

Paying attention can be a spiritual practice. It’s a better habit to cultivate in life. When I use the phrase “paying attention” I mean making choices about what to pay attention to and when. 

This spiritual practice becomes especially vital when we’re trying to understand what God is calling us to do with our lives. Discerning this choice needs our commitment to paying attention. Decisions that support us in paying attention include setting aside time for quiet and deep listening, even, at times, to go away for a few days of retreat so we can be less interrupted in our listening to ourselves and to God.

The heart is a metaphor for this deep listening. In quiet times, especially extended times of quiet, we can pay attention to what matters to our hearts. This is where we meet God, who leads us to choices where we can best use our unique gifts.

May you not delay in making the time you need for this kind of listening, remembering that God is present in your heart’s desire.

Sister Tarianne