CHAPTER 3 – THEY DEVOTED THEMSELVES
“Never be entirely idle; but either be reading, or writing, or praying or meditating or endeavoring something for the public good.” -Thomas à Kempis
“Your daily occupation should be threefold, namely, prayer, manual labor, and divine reading.” -St. Columba
Our lives revolve around a harmonious rhythm of prayer, contemplation, study, and work. Each element seamlessly flows from the others. Prayer and contemplation fuel our work and study, while those activities, in turn, deepen our connection to prayer. This ongoing cycle, practiced diligently, brings us closer to understanding Christ’s perspective.
Just as Jesus’ actions were fueled by prayer, so too is our response to the Gospel. We strive to integrate prayer and action, fostering a life of devotion that overflows into service. Prayer imbues our labor with purpose, and our work becomes an extension of our prayers.
A daily schedule ensures dedicated time for each facet of our spiritual life. While the schedule is flexible to accommodate individual needs, our primary commitment remains unwavering: a life centered on solitary and communal prayer, apostolic work, and religious study. Secular work, while important, must never overshadow our core purpose.
Scriptural Support
For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Peter 1:5-8 (ESV)
Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey away. 13 And when they had entered, they went up to the upper room, where they were staying, Peter and John and James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot and Judas the son of James. 14 All these with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer, together with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers. Acts of the Apostles 1:12-14 (EVS)