Striving vs. Abiding

In the spiritual life, it’s difficult to know whether striving to
do God’s will or just abiding in him is better. But why can’t we do
both? Fr. Mike tells the story of a perpetually active student
athlete. His inability to disengage in doing things and just abide
in God was a problem, and he knew it. Fr. Mike advised him, it’s
not that abiding is right and striving is wrong. It’s important to
do, but it’s important to also know what not to do in order to
acquire the goal your living for. There are many reasons why we
choose to commit to activities, whether it’s for fear of missing
out, liking being needed, needing to be liked. The list goes on.
But if I find myself unable to rest, do I have a clear vision of
what I really want out of life? Being slightly engaged and not
knowing what you’re striving for can be more exhausting than being
fully engaged while knowing what you’re striving for. It’s
important to know when, where, and how I need rest, to know when to
just abide in God, like Mary and not Martha (see Luke 10:38-42). In
any given hour, you can be called to strive like Martha in one
moment and abide like Mary in the next; to do something one moment
and just be in the next. The best thing is when you know you’re
doing the right thing and you get to abide in God as well because
you know you’re doing his will.