Thursday 28th August 2025

“Stay awake!
For you do not know on which day your Lord will come.
Be sure of this: if the master of the house
had known the hour of night when the thief was coming,
he would have stayed awake
and not let his house be broken into.
So too, you also must be prepared. I w
For at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come.

So I have answered exams all my life, some days for a degree and some to get entrance to medical college, but one consistent piece of advice my father gave me was… always sleep early and wake up early. That did last till I lived with my parents!

Once I moved into the college accommodation (hostel), I would study at odd hours until 3am some days with all focus and dedication. I would STAY AWAKE, reading and revising all I had read earlier in the months just the night before exams, and over the years it became a thing.

I would keep everything until the last minute—like this reflection! Parkinson’s Law states that work expands to fill the time allotted for its completion, and I am a victim—leading to my procrastination and inefficiency a lot more than I would like. I would cram my studies in the last few days or hours at some points—alas! The same cannot be done to our plan with God!

We as Christians have to build a faith through regular prayer and fasting. Learning to appreciate the Word of God and emulating it with utmost sincerity…

Amen.

About the Author

Hello! I’m Dr Analise Maria D’ Mello, (MBBS, MS obgyn, DNB) from the beautiful state of Goa in India. I was born and raised in a Roman Catholic family, learning my prayers, catechism and Catholic values from my parents and grandmothers. I am currently practicing as an obstetrician and gynecologist for 3 years since my residency. I often speak on anti-abortion to college students and married couples, and counsel distressed pregnant women with appropriate medical advice. I am part of the St Luke's Medical Guild of Catholic Doctors in my state providing services in prisons, and Lenten and advent retreats for medical professionals and their families.

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6 Comments

  1. Analise, thank you. I can only say Me Too to staying up too late and then needing to catch up the next day. I need to allocate my time to better allow time for prayer.

  2. Many thanks Analise. Prepare, be alert, watch. We know not the day nor the hour when the reckoning will come. Peace with you my sister.

  3. Procrastination is the devil at work…I’m constantly telling the devil to get behind me and pray to our Lord to lead me! Stay strong and keep going forward in your own way…whatever works with our Lord at the helm is best! God bless you with your endeavors…🕊️

  4. Readers of ACM,
    There is a wonderful podcast called “Daily Exegesis” produced by the Logical Bible Ministry, on the Hallow app, Spotify, You Tube. This ministry is Catholic and everyday, a literal verse by verse explanation of the Gospel reading is given. What was the original meaning in the original context?

    Please do listen to it. The Gospel text will become all the more meaningful to you.

    God bless

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