Time is Holy: How to Bring Liturgical Balance into Your Q4 Calendar
“There is an appointed time for everything, and a time for every affair under the heavens.” — Ecclesiastes 3:1
Introduction
In business, especially as Catholic women entrepreneurs, it’s easy to let quarterly goals and client deadlines dictate our every move. But the Church invites us into a different rhythm—a holy pace that honors both work and rest. When we allow the liturgy to shape our calendar, we remember that time itself is a gift from God, not just a resource to be managed.
This month, we turn for inspiration to St. Thérèse of Lisieux (1873–1897). Born into a devout French family, Thérèse entered the Carmelite convent at just 15 years old. Though her life was short (she died of tuberculosis at 24), her spirituality left a profound mark on the Church. Known as the “Little Flower,” she offered the world her petite voie, or “little way:” a path of holiness found not in extraordinary deeds but in doing ordinary things with extraordinary love. Thérèse embraced the hiddenness of convent life, finding joy in small sacrifices, daily duties, and patient endurance. Her autobiography, Story of a Soul, reveals a faith rooted in simplicity, trust, and confidence in God’s mercy. Declared a Doctor of the Church in 1997, she shows us that greatness is found not in striving for recognition but in surrendering every moment to God’s providence.
Inspired by the example of St. Thérèse of Lisieux, let’s explore what it means to let the Church’s calendar, not the world’s pressure, set the pace of our lives and businesses.
As we begin the final quarter of the year, the Church’s calendar anchors us with reminders of eternity: All Saints, All Souls, and the approach of Advent. St. Thérèse teaches us to walk through these seasons with balance, resisting burnout and overactivity, and instead trusting that time is holy.
Live liturgically, not just productively
The world tells entrepreneurs to plan around fiscal quarters and KPIs. But as Catholic women in business, we are invited to plan around the feasts and fasts of the Church. Living liturgically means letting God’s time, not just Google Calendar, set your pace.
Action: Build your Q4 schedule around Advent, All Saints, and other feast days. Mark them in your planner now.
For more on aligning your business with your faith, read Don’t Skip Ordinary Time
Celebrate feasts with festivity
Too often, we let feast days slip by like any other day with emails, meetings, and spreadsheets, but the Church invites us to rejoice. As entrepreneurs, giving ourselves permission to step away from work and celebrate reminds us that joy is part of our vocation.
Action: Choose one feast day this month to close your laptop early and honor with prayer, community, or food.
For further inspiration, see 4 Ways to Observe Advent in a Secular Workplace
Honor fasts with intentional pauses
We live in a culture that glorifies busyness, but the Church teaches that stopping is also holy. For women in business, fasting doesn’t always mean not eating food. It can mean fasting from endless meetings, digital noise, or unnecessary purchases. Pausing creates space for grace to enter.
Action: Choose one day this month to fast from meetings, scrolling, or purchases. Offer the day for your clients.
For guidance on finding spiritual focus, check out Finding Joy in Fasting
See ordinary days as sanctified too
Not every day is a feast or fast. Most are ordinary, and that’s exactly where holiness is found. Lighting a candle at your desk, saying a short prayer before sending an email, or offering your daily tasks to God transforms the ordinary into sacred ground.
Action: Light a candle at your desk each day this month to remind you that even emails can become an offering.
For more ideas on weaving holiness into daily work, read Everyday Holiness: Striving for Sainthood "on the Streets"
Practical Reflection Box: 3 Ways to Live Liturgically as an Entrepreneur
Start your week with the Sunday readings. Use them to guide one key intention for your business in the days ahead.
Anchor your planner to the liturgical calendar. Highlight feast days and liturgical seasons alongside your business deadlines.
Offer your client work at Mass. Each week, consciously place your projects and clients on the altar with the gifts of bread and wine.
Closing Prayer
St. Thérèse, little flower who taught the greatness of small things, help me walk with grace through time. Teach me not to rush, to pressure, or to prove. Let me follow the Church’s calendar like a melody, trusting the pace of God’s providence. And may I find heaven in the humble minutes. Amen.
Dr. Glory Enyinnaya is a management consultant who worked at Accenture before founding the consulting firm Kleos Advisory. Her research, which focuses on the role of entrepreneurs as change agents, has been published in top-tier publications such as the Harvard Business Review. She is a member of the faculty of Pan-Atlantic University in Nigeria. Her hobbies include blogging at www.gloryenyinnaya.com.