One Thing To Study

In the 5th century BC, Telamon of Arcadia said, “It is one thing to study war and another to live the warrior’s life.”

I’ve been reflecting on this a lot lately. I actually printed it out and put it on my desk because it applies to so many areas of our lives outside of war or being a soldier.

You could say it is one thing to read a book about parenting and another to be a good parent. It is one thing to watch YouTube videos about working out and another to actually be fit. And finally, it is one thing to study the faith and another to live it.

This is the trap for all of us. With so much information available today about the faith—from podcasts and books and videos and even these reflections that I write – there’s so much you can consume.

The pitfall is that that’s all we do. We study and watch and listen and read, but we don’t live it.

We become experts on prayer without actually praying. We know everything about the saints without imitating their virtue. We can explain Church teaching but struggle to live it on a Monday morning when someone cuts us off in traffic or our spouse says something that irritates us.

Knowledge is good. Study is valuable. But it was never meant to be the destination—it’s supposed to lead somewhere.

At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter how much you study, watch, listen, or read if it doesn’t turn into living it. God doesn’t ask us at judgment what podcasts we listened to or how many spiritual books we read. He asks what we did with what we knew.

What’s one thing you know about the faith that you’re not living yet?