Time with God passes quickly
Daughter asks Dad about daily prayerBy Joe E. Holoubek M.D.
and Martha Holoubek FitzgeraldDear Dad:
For as long as I can remember, you and Mom went to church every morning, came home for breakfast, then went to work as physicians. When you could no longer drive, the two of you would still start your day together in prayer.
How did you find the time? And how did it help you get through the day?
With love, Martha
Dear Daughter:
Certain words of Jesus used to haunt me. In the Garden of Gethsemane, He came upon his tired apostles fast asleep and said, “Couldst thou not watch one hour with me?”
I could identify with Peter, James and John. I was often tired, as a cardiologist with a busy practice, and one hour a day in communion with God seemed like a major commitment I could not keep. I worked most days from early morning to late at night. Surely it was enough to go to church on Sunday. The Lord would understand.
Then your oldest brother made his First Communion. The next morning he was up at 5:30 a.m. He wanted to go to Mass. Reluctantly I took him. The church was only two blocks away. The next day he did the same thing and I reluctantly went again.
Your mother, who was more spiritual than I, suggested that we alternate taking Brian and staying home with the other children. And so it went for several more days until Brian decided to sleep in. By that time Alice and I each had a Daily Missal and looked forward to the hour in church. I missed it when it was my turn to stay home. With only a few minutes of meditation before the service, I was talking to God.
It felt good to start the day with an hour’s visit with God. We would arise at 5:45, go to church and be home by 7. After a few months we were able to let the older children take care of you younger ones and we were able to go together daily – which we did for more than 40 years. When our patients found out about it, they always asked to us pray for them in the morning.
If we were out of town and could not find a church, there was a void in the day. Instead we would spend time in prayer---such as meditating on the life of Jesus as we said the rosary.
Soon I felt that God was with me all of the time. I thanked Him dozens of times a day. When I needed help, I knew that Jesus was right beside me. And when I strayed, I asked forgiveness.
I’ve never before tried to put this in words, but I know that this personal relationship with God kept us centered and focused on what was important in our lives, both personal and professional. The minutes taken out of our busy days were no longer an issue. In fact, we developed a desire to spend more moments in His presence, knowing that we had someone who cared for us at all times.
Years later, as you remember, we built this house and set aside one room for a chapel. Your sister-in-law made a beautiful stained-glass window for it. We had priests offer Mass there on special occasions. But your mother and I often used it for prayer and reflection.
I know that God is everywhere, but it is quiet in the chapel room and there are no distractions. I feel closer to him in the chapel. I feel tranquility.
I often go back to the chapel in the evening, recall the events of the day and try to determine what I could have done better. I feel regret when I realize I may have hurt someone and ask God for the strength to right the wrong and seek forgiveness.
Six years ago I stopped driving and we quit daily Mass. We missed the companionship of other morning churchgoers, but found we could have an hour of even more concentrated prayer at home.
We would follow the Scriptures for the day as if we were at Mass: a reading from the Old Testament, a psalm and a reading from the New Testament. Then we would turn to commentaries about those readings, and I could understand them even better.
We would talk to God silently and yet together. And the hour would pass quickly.
Now I am alone … but Alice is still with me when I pray. Morning and evening, we are together in the presence of our beloved Lord, savior and friend.
Joe E. Holoubek M.D. of Shreveport, La., was a consulting cardiologist and internist. In retirement he has written a Bible-based novel, Letters to Luke, the story of a physician living in Capernaum at the time of Christ. Letters to Luke, published by Little Dove Press, is the 2006 winner of the Writer’s Digest Award for inspirational literature. The lead female character, a woman trained in the healing arts, is based on Dr. Joe’s wife, Dr. Alice Holoubek, who died in 2005. Learn more about the author and his life at www.letterstoluke.com
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