We get it. You already have a to-do list that is long. This list isn’t meant to guilt you into an impossible regimen on top of your already crammed day.
The goal is to start incorporating one or two of these things into your day and then keep working until these actions become a natural part of who you are. Make them essential healthy habits – like brushing your teeth – so that you don’t even have to think twice about getting them done.
1. Start the day with prayer, your Bible, and a talk with your Mother
It sounds so simple, yet I don’t understand why some days I can’t seem to “fit” in prayer. Our days need to be centered around this habit. Make a date of it. Set your cell phone alarm to a time when you can pray and don’t leave God stranded. Mornings are best, but if it doesn’t work for you find a time that does.
Pull out your Bible and read a line or two. The daily Mass readings are a great place to start. A goal for every Catholic is to say the rosary every day, but some of us are in a season of life when this isn’t possible. If you can’t do a rosary, start with at least a Hail Mary and work up to a decade or a chaplet.
2. Smile, Use your Manners, Be kind, Give out hugs
Have you heard the old Hymn, “They will know we are Christians by our love, by our love…”? It’s not necessarily true today. Christians have become just as rude and inconsiderate as everyone else, sometimes even more so! Let’s reclaim our Christian love by smiling, letting others go first in line or helping old ladies cross the street.
3. Go on Social Media (i.e., communicate!), call a friend, visit a friend
Yes, I know we have a bunch of posts about how social media is overused, but go ahead, use it! However, use it in a way that glorifies God. Share a scripture with a friend. Check in on an old classmate. Daily connect with people to build relationships. (Don’t stop there though, make it a weekly goal to get together in person with a friend or family member.)
4. Tell someone you love them and why
I don’t know anyone who has ever gotten tired of hearing they are loved. It’s even better when they are given a list of reasons why! Whether it is your parents, siblings, or your own children, make it a daily habit to tell at least one person in your life how much you love them.
5. Talk about God
Make God a part of your whole day, not just your prayer time. Bring Him into conversations with friends, family, even co-workers if you can. We talk about things we love – movies, restaurants, people… but we often fail to talk about God in the same way.
6. Sacrifice something
It’s so important that we learn to make daily sacrifices and offer them up to the Lord. It doesn’t have to be anything crazy. Eat bread with no butter. Turn off the radio and drive in silence. It’s the little things that cultivate our holiness and help us to overcome our attachment to things of the world.
7. Serve in some way
Look for a way to serve someone everyday. Again, this doesn’t have to be something major like heading to Africa on service trip. It can be doing the dishes for your mom, paying for a stranger’s coffee, or picking up garbage as you walk down the street. Don’t let a day go by in which you did not do something for someone else.
8. Reflect on your day
At the end of every day, take a few minutes to think back over the day. An examination of conscience is a great way to do this. Is there someone you need to forgive? Is there someone you need to seek forgiveness from? Think about the ways in which the Lord provided for you and be thankful for His many blessings. Thank Him! Ask yourself, did I move closer to or further from God through my actions today?
Source: dailyrosaryfamily
