While daylight lasts we must carry on the work of him who sent me; night comes, when no one can work.
John 9.4

Jesus makes this urgent admonition as he performs the miracle of giving sight to a man blind from birth. It reminds us also of the comparatively short time at our disposal during the active years of our life, and how important it is to act now. The seventh deadly sin, sloth, is the most insidious of them all, for there are usually so many good reasons why we should delay doing what ought to be done while we slink away with guilt into the shadows, where we hope we will avoid detection while the trouble quietly evaporates.

On the other hand, immediate action can easily assume an obsessional character, so that we feel we must always show the flag and be unceasingly involved in every social or ecclesiastical issue in order to attest to our Christian commitment. Activism is also an insidious evil in the spiritual life: we become so involved in social or other matters that God is eased out of the picture; while his influence is always with us when we attempt to do our basic duties, we may become too busy to set aside time in which to hear without distraction the divine voice speaking within us. It is one thing to be inspired to a nobler calling, but quite another to hear inwardly how best to proceed. So much confusion is caused by the type of individual who means well but simply gets in the way of others who are better qualified to deal with the matter.

Therefore the first work we all should heed in the daylight hours of active, youthful endeavour is that of drawing closer to God in wordless contemplation. Such an activity can also be followed when the night of illness or old age casts its shadow on the routine of our lives, drawing us up with a jolt to consider the facts of mundane existence. But, interestingly enough, it is easier to pray silently to God when one is in the throes of turmoil than when one is relaxed on holiday or completely retired from work. Active participation in the world's show seems a necessary stimulus for effective prayer. On the other hand, a remoteness from the world's problems seems to make us more distant from our Creator. Prayer therefore loses something of its urgency as it becomes increasingly an attitude of general good will without the bite of personal commitment.

Immediately following the quotation from St John's Gospel above, Jesus speaks about carrying on God's work which is to bring light to the world: "While I am in the world I am the light of the world" (John 9.5). This is the work of all of us, and the deeper implication of the miracle is that Christ is here to give sight to all who will receive. As so often happens, those who are full of their own rectitude wilfully remain blind to higher spiritual truth, whereas the humble and suffering people can grasp the gift of vision. Thus the congenitally blind man received spiritual as well as physical sight, while the hostile group of Pharisees blinded themselves further in rejecting the one who came with healing gifts to bestow on them also.

Our task here on earth is also to bring the light of God's love to all whom we meet in our day's work. Whether our work is considered menial or exalted by the world's standards is of little importance; what matters is the dedication of our efforts and the love we bring to others on the way. In the stern commission of St Teresa of Avila to her Carmelite community, we too have our marching orders: "Remember, Christ has no body now on earth but yours, no hands but yours, no feet but yours; yours are the eyes through which is to look out Christ's compassion to the world; yours are the feet with which he is to go about doing good; and yours are the hands with which he is to bless us now."

May I always have such dedication to the world, Lord, that I may be about your business when tempted by the diversion of the passing scene to cease my labour and rest in idleness. May I also remember to rest in your refreshing peace before I move onward, so that I may bring that peace to the world.