What’s the last thing you do as your head hits the pillow at night or the first thing you do at the moment you wake up in the morning? In this age of constant connectedness, many of us take one last look at our email or social media before hitting the sack and another quick look when the alarm goes off in the morning. If only we were all this well connected with God.
Because you are taking the time to read the Austin Catholic New Media site, there’s a pretty good chance that you love God. But to put this in social media terms, do you “like” God too? Instead of scrolling through my Facebook and Twitter timelines to see the status of my friends, relatives and in many cases people I barely know, the one person I should connect with at the end of the day is the Lord.
In a recent homily, Pope Francis said:
Who of us, at night, at the end of the day, remains by himself, by herself, and asks the question: what happened today in my heart? What happened? What things have passed through my heart? If we don’t do this, we have truly failed to know how to watch and guard [our hearts] well… What happened today in my heart? Did anyone I don’t know enter? Is the key in its place?’ And this will help us to defend ourselves from so much wickedness, even from that which we could do if these demons, who are very clever and at the end would cheat all of us, even if they enter.
There’s an app for just about everything these days. At the end of the day, some of these apps will tell you how many steps you took, how many calories you consumed, how much money you’ve earned and more. In addition, there are many great Catholic apps that put the Bible, the Catechism of the Catholic Church, the daily readings and hundreds of prayers at your fingertips.
Rather than asking myself a series of formal questions, my daily examination is more casual — just a simple conversation with God to reflect on what I did, what I failed to do, what I need to do better and what I need to quit doing.
Actually, it’s good that there there isn’t a conscience app buzzing us whenever we sin. If you think your smartphone battery dies quickly now, just imagine how fast it would croak under the burden of all your sins.
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