ORDER: My Resolution Word of the Year

By Brocken Inaglory (Own work)

Last year, I felt that Jesus might be telling me that I needed order in my life. Okay. It wasn't a mild hint. He told me over, and over, and over again in prayer, and I never really did anything about it other than make a few halfhearted attempts to get organized. Big mistake.

Order is so much more than neat paperwork piles. God's creation is built on natural order, and when we are disordered, we are out of sync with God. What's my life look like when I'm disordered?

• I miss morning Mass because I oversleep or I'm running around like a chicken with my head cut off. Missing the Mass is losing out on the opportunity to hear the Word and consume the Eucharist--two very important elements of an ordered day. 
• My conversations with Jesus consists of a few quick prayers during the day, usually when I want something, leaving me (and Him) unsatisfied.
• I'm cranky or depressed or lethargic or overwhelmed because I'm out of relationship with Jesus and, therefore, have difficulty prioritizing my day. Instead, it's like standing in the middle of a field trying to shoot clay pigeons as they fly at me from every direction. (The enemy loves confusion. It keeps you focused on everything but God.) 



By Danny Choo from Tokyo, Japan 

• I'm fearful because I've forgotten to hand everything over to Him and stop worrying about the future or trying to control the present. Fear is the opposite of love, and God is Love. If I'm fearful, I'm definitely pushing Him away.

                                                My disordered life? Not a pretty site.




Yes, I believe He was also telling me to get my act together in an organizational way. My mission is my Domestic Church (more on that later), and the only way to carry out that mission properly is to do it with order. When I'm muddled, it effects my husband, my family, my dog, my finances, my writing . . . everything.

Order comes down to putting God first.  We shouldn't fit God into our day. We should fit our day around God. He doesn't want to be the most important thing in our life. He wants to be everything.

2014 is all about ORDER.

Next post, I'll touch on some of the ways I find order. I'd love to hear your ideas and suggestions.