Up in the night, and thought this excerpt from The Catechism of the Catholic Church to be helpful to any of us in our attempts at being followers of Jesus Christ.

2046 By living with the mind of Christ, Christians hasten the coming of the Reign of God, "a kingdom of justice, love, and peace." They do not, for all that, abandon their earthly tasks; faithful to their master, they fulfill them with uprightness, patience, and love.

I've been working hard here, trying to paint the pole barn sides in the cooler part of day.  The task is made more difficult by needing to dig dirt out and away from lower portions; the metal can rust and rot when the soil is wet.  In some areas, the elderly woman who lived and died here, had hired someone to put plastic down and against the side before backfilling with dirt.  I will add plastic in other areas not done.  It is a good idea but not totally foolproof; yet it is worth doing.  I also am going to try putting the styrofoam "baffles" that I have on hand, down in there.  I don't think styrofoam decomposes much.

In the hotter portions of the day I continue laying the natural hickory wood flooring.  It is a slow process, particularly in smaller areas such as under the stairs and in a wide hall off which are a bathroom and small room  as well as laundry area tucked under the stairs.

I might add to the above excerpt that I try to fulfill my earthly tasks with a sense of enJOYment, for the attitude seems crucial when we witness to others, even if no one sees but knows we are hard at work with challenging or tedious tasks.  

When up on the extension ladder pulled to full height, and then having to still reach or place the ladder with very little slant, I pray for those with most crucial needs, hoping that the difficulty of the task I'm doing somehow lends itself to deeper and more intense praying.  However, it could be also that our prayers are efficacious when we are not in intense situations but in joyful situations.  Thus making a difficult or challenging work effort joyful, seems worthwhile.

God bless His Real Presence in us!  Let us love God above all things and others as God loves!