Vinita Hampton Wright continues her reflection on life’s interruptions at Days of Deepening Friendship.  Her posts are hitting home with me….life seems full of minor and life-altering interruptions right now! 

“Would it help if we could categorize the interruptions?
Minor interruptions: lost keys; meeting or appointment that appears out of nowhere; headache that hampers an afternoon’s work; you end up watching two grandchildren most of the evening.

Changes-the-whole-day interruptions: car breaks down; your significant other ends up in the emergency room; you must sit in the bank and untangle some mess with the checking account; you need to prepare dinner for four extra people.

Life-altering interruptions: major breakdown in a relationship; you or a significant other loses a job or faces relocation; someone in the family is arrested and incarcerated; you or someone you love faces a dire medical situation that will require months of treatment; you lose your home.

When the unexpected happens, we learn quickly what resources we need to find—and also what resources we already have. My suggestion is this: for every interruption, try to look without panic at your situation.

Identify the resources you already possess for dealing with this change of path. Then make a list of resources you don’t have but need to find.
And repeat these statements as the need arises:

• God has already provided.
• God will continue to provide.
• I am able to walk this path.
• This is my life. I claim it and will give my best to living it.

How do you deal with the many levels of interruptions in your life?
How do you turn them over to God?

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.