What a fitting time for me to reflect on what tempts me from keeping God first in my life as I am in the middle of discerning my commitments!  I find that there are two things that can easily distract me or tempt me from keeping God first in my life. 

As a mom it is so easy to neglect my own prayer life under the guise of good.  “I am too busy to pray today because my kids need me” or “ I try to pray in the morning, but I am often interrupted by a child waking up earlier than normal and needing my attention.”  While we must be gentle with ourselves in living our vocation as parents, we also have to be careful to not use our children as an excuse to not attend to our own spiritual lives.  Our children need us rooted in God after all!

Secondly, as a person in lay ministry in the church, it is amazing to me how quickly the action of ministry can take place of my actual prayer life.  I experience God through giving retreats, through giving spiritual direction, and through my work with Charis; however, none of these are replacements for taking my own personal prayer time to deepen my relationship with God.

Each day during Lent, a variety of writers and organizations will be offering reflections on the 3 Minute Retreats.   The short retreat are an incredible way to start your day and root your day in prayer!  If you would like to sign up to receive 3 minute retreats in your email, please visit the facebook page. 

Becky Eldredge

Becky is an Ignatian-trained spiritual director, retreat facilitator, and writer. She is the author of the Busy Lives and Restless Souls (March 2017, Loyola Press) and The Inner Chapel (April 2020, Loyola Press). She helps others create space to connect faith and everyday life through facilitating retreats and days of reflection, through writing, and through spiritual direction. With nearly twenty years of ministry experience within the Catholic Church, Becky seeks to help others discover God at work in the every day moments of people’s lives by utilizing St. Ignatius’ Spiritual Exercises and the many gifts that our Catholic faith and Ignatian Spirituality provide.