Opportunity Missed
Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Mark 6:1-6
Jesus departed from there and came to his native place, accompanied by
his disciples. When the sabbath came he began to teach in the synagogue, and
many who heard him were astonished. They said, "Where did this man get all
this? What kind of wisdom has been given him? What mighty deeds are wrought by
his hands! Is he not the carpenter, the son of Mary, and the brother of James
and Joses and Judas and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?" And
they took offense at him. Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without
honor except in his native place and among his own kin and in his own
house." So he was not able to perform any mighty deed there, apart from
curing a few sick people by laying his hands on them. He was amazed at their
lack of faith.
Introductory Prayer: Lord, thank You for this Sunday, the
day we celebrate Your Resurrection. I believe that You walk with us, Lord. I
believe that You come into our “synagogue” today and bring Your message of
salvation. I trust that You will guide me to greater light today. Thank You for
coming to look for me.
Petition: Lord, help me to have a heart and will open to Your message.
1. God Can Surprise Us: Jesus was well known in Nazareth --
or so they thought. But there was something they had never seen in him: they
never saw the power of God in him. He was too ordinary. Our life can seem too
ordinary to us sometimes. We may not recognize the voice of God when he calls
to us, when he asks for a deeper faith and commitment to him. We may not
recognize him speaking through the example and words of others. We may not
shake off our routine and truly listen to the Word of God. We can learn from
the surprise the people of Nazareth showed at Jesus’ true identity, as it will
help us to be more alert to God’s surprises.
2. “And They Took Offense at Him”: Jesus can offend us. He came to
shake up certainties about the closeness of God. God becomes uncomfortably
close in Jesus. He knows all about us. He “grew up” with us: he knows our whole
history, our weaknesses and our inadequacies. He expects much more of us than
what we have given up to now. I need to let God challenge me every day. Only in
that way can I really discover Jesus, the miracle-maker. Only in that way can I
work with him to change myself and the world around me.
3. “He was Amazed at Their Lack of Faith”: What is there in
my life that I think Jesus cannot touch, cannot change? Am I willing to present
it humbly to Jesus each day so that he can slowly transform me? Do I try to use
my spiritual commitments to grow in faith? Do I trust in Christ? If not, I need
to ask him to increase that trust. He wants to make me into a saint. He wants
to change this world. He can. I simply have to put my trust in him.
Conversation with Christ: Lord, You have shown me that You can
overcome any obstacle. I know that You want to show Your power in me. Help me
to believe in You more today. Let me show others the confidence and joy that You
bring. Your power is present in my soul, Lord. Help me discover the signs of Your
Resurrection.
Resolution: Today I will make an extra act of charity for my family.
Excerpts from the DIARY of Saint Faustina Kowalska
92 Humiliation is my daily food. I understand that the bride must
herself share in everything that is the groom's; and so His cloak of mockery
must cover me, too. At those times when I suffer much, I try to remain silent,
as I do not trust my tongue which, at such moments, is inclined to talk for
itself, while its duty is to help me praise God for all the blessings and gifts
which He has given me. When I receive Jesus in Holy Communion, I ask Him
fervently to deign to heal my tongue so that I would offend neither God nor
neighbor by it. I want my tongue to praise God without cease. Great are the
faults committed by the tongue. The soul will not attain sanctity if it does
not keep watch over its tongue.
94 O my Lord, inflame my heart with love for You, that my spirit may
not grow weary amidst the storms, the sufferings and the trials. You see how
weak I am. Love can do all.
95 +A Deeper Knowledge of God and the Terror of the Soul.
In the beginning, God lets himself be known as Holiness, Justice, Goodness - that is to say, Mercy. The soul does not come to know this all at once, but piecemeal, in flashes; that is to say, when God draws near. And this does not last for long, because the soul could not bear such light. During prayer the soul experiences flashes of this light which make it impossible to pray as before. Try as it may to force itself to pray as it did before, all is in vain; it becomes completely impossible for it to continue to pray as it did before it received this light. This light which has touched the soul is alive within it, and nothing can either quench or diminish it. This flash of the knowledge of God draws the soul and enkindles its love for Him.
But this same flash, at the same time, allows the soul to know itself as it is; the soul sees its whole interior in a superior light, and it rises up alarmed and terrified. Still, it does not remain under the effects of terror, but it begins to purify itself, to humble and abase itself before the Lord. These lights become stronger and more frequent; the more the soul is crystallized, the more these lights penetrate it. However, if the soul has responded faithfully and courageously to these first graces, God fills it with His consolations and gives himself to it in a perceptible manner. At certain moments, the soul, as it were, enters into intimacy with God and greatly rejoices in this; it believes that it has already reached the degree of perfection destined for it, because its defects and faults are asleep within it, and this makes it think that they no longer exist. Nothing seems difficult for it; it is ready for everything. It begins to plunge itself into God and taste the divine delights. It is carried along by grace and does not take account of the fact that the time of trial and testing may come. And, in fact, this state does not last long. Other moments will soon come. I should add here, however, that the soul will respond more faithfully to divine grace if it has a well - informed confessor to whom it can confide everything.
In the beginning, God lets himself be known as Holiness, Justice, Goodness - that is to say, Mercy. The soul does not come to know this all at once, but piecemeal, in flashes; that is to say, when God draws near. And this does not last for long, because the soul could not bear such light. During prayer the soul experiences flashes of this light which make it impossible to pray as before. Try as it may to force itself to pray as it did before, all is in vain; it becomes completely impossible for it to continue to pray as it did before it received this light. This light which has touched the soul is alive within it, and nothing can either quench or diminish it. This flash of the knowledge of God draws the soul and enkindles its love for Him.
But this same flash, at the same time, allows the soul to know itself as it is; the soul sees its whole interior in a superior light, and it rises up alarmed and terrified. Still, it does not remain under the effects of terror, but it begins to purify itself, to humble and abase itself before the Lord. These lights become stronger and more frequent; the more the soul is crystallized, the more these lights penetrate it. However, if the soul has responded faithfully and courageously to these first graces, God fills it with His consolations and gives himself to it in a perceptible manner. At certain moments, the soul, as it were, enters into intimacy with God and greatly rejoices in this; it believes that it has already reached the degree of perfection destined for it, because its defects and faults are asleep within it, and this makes it think that they no longer exist. Nothing seems difficult for it; it is ready for everything. It begins to plunge itself into God and taste the divine delights. It is carried along by grace and does not take account of the fact that the time of trial and testing may come. And, in fact, this state does not last long. Other moments will soon come. I should add here, however, that the soul will respond more faithfully to divine grace if it has a well - informed confessor to whom it can confide everything.
96
+Trials sent by God to a soul which is particularly loved by Him.
Temptations and darkness; Satan. The soul's love [for God] is still not such as God would have it. The soul suddenly loses the tangible perception of God's presence. Various defects and imperfections rise up within it, and it must fight them furiously. All her faults lift up their heads, but the soul's vigilance is great. The former awareness of the presence of God gives place to coldness and spiritual dryness; the soul has no taste for spiritual exercises; it cannot pray, either in the old way, or in the manner in which it had just begun to pray. It struggles this way and that, but can find no satisfaction. God has hidden himself from it, and it can find no consolation in creatures, nor can any of these creatures find a way of consoling it. The soul craves passionately for God, but sees its own misery; it begins to sense God's justice; it seems to it that it has lost all the gifts that God had given it; its mind is dimmed, and darkness fills it; unspeakable torment begins. The soul tries to explain its state to the confessor, but it is not understood and is assailed by an even greater unrest. Satan begins his work.
Temptations and darkness; Satan. The soul's love [for God] is still not such as God would have it. The soul suddenly loses the tangible perception of God's presence. Various defects and imperfections rise up within it, and it must fight them furiously. All her faults lift up their heads, but the soul's vigilance is great. The former awareness of the presence of God gives place to coldness and spiritual dryness; the soul has no taste for spiritual exercises; it cannot pray, either in the old way, or in the manner in which it had just begun to pray. It struggles this way and that, but can find no satisfaction. God has hidden himself from it, and it can find no consolation in creatures, nor can any of these creatures find a way of consoling it. The soul craves passionately for God, but sees its own misery; it begins to sense God's justice; it seems to it that it has lost all the gifts that God had given it; its mind is dimmed, and darkness fills it; unspeakable torment begins. The soul tries to explain its state to the confessor, but it is not understood and is assailed by an even greater unrest. Satan begins his work.
97 Faith staggers under the impact; the struggle is fierce. The soul
tries hard to cling to God by an act of will. With God's permission, Satan goes
even further: hope and love are put to the test. These temptations are
terrible. God supports the soul in secret, so to speak. The soul is not aware
of this, but otherwise it would be impossible to stand firm; and God knows very
well how much He can allow to befall a soul. The soul is tempted to unbelief in
respect to revealed truths and to insincerity toward the confessor. Satan says
to it, "Look, no one understands you; why speak about all this?"
Words that terrify it sound in its ears, and it seems to the soul that it is
uttering these against God. It sees what it does not want to see. It hears what
it does not want to hear. And, oh, it is a terrible thing at times like these
not to have an experienced confessor! The soul carries the whole burden alone.
However, one should make every effort to find, if it is at all possible, a
well-informed confessor, for the soul can collapse under the burden and come to
the very edge of the precipice. All these trials are heavy and difficult. God
does not send them to a soul which has not already been admitted to a deeper
intimacy with Him and which has not yet tasted the divine delights. Besides, in
this God has His own plans, which for us are impenetrable. God often prepares a
soul in this way for His future designs and great works. He wants to try it as
pure gold is tried. But this is not yet the end of the testing; there is still
the trial of trials, the complete abandonment of the soul by God.
+ The Trial of Trials, Complete Abandonment - Despair
98 When the soul comes out victorious from the preceding trials, even though it may stumble here and there, it fights on valiantly, humbly calling upon God, "Save me, I am perishing!" And it is still able to fight on.
At this point, however, the soul is engulfed in a horrible night. It sees within itself only sin. It feels terrible. It sees itself completely abandoned by God. It feels itself to be the object of His hatred. It is but one step away from despair. The soul does its best to defend itself; it tries to stir up its confidence; but prayer is an even greater torment for it, as this prayer seems to arouse God to an even greater anger. The soul finds itself poised on the summit of a lofty mountain on the very brink of a precipice.
The soul is drawn to God, but feels repulsed. All other sufferings and tortures in the world are as nothing compared with this sensation into which it has been plunged; namely, that of being rejected by God. No one can bring it any relief; it finds itself completely alone; there is no one to defend it. It raises its eyes to heaven, but is convinced that this is not for her-for her all is lost. It falls deeper and deeper from darkness to darkness, and it seems to it that it has lost forever the God it used to love so dearly. This thought is torture beyond all description. But the soul does not agree to it and tries to lift its gaze toward heaven, but in vain! And this makes the torture even more intense.
If God wishes to keep the soul in such darkness, no one will be able to give it light. It experiences rejection by God in a vivid and terrifying manner. From its heart burst forth painful moans, so painful that no priest will comprehend it, unless he himself has been through these trials. In the midst of this, the evil spirit adds to the soul's suffering, mocking it: "Will you persist in your faithfulness? This is your reward; you are in our power!" But Satan has only as much influence over the soul as God allows him, and God knows how much we can bear. "What have you gotten out of your mortifications," says Satan, "and out of your fidelity to the rule? What use are all these efforts? You have been rejected by God!" This word, rejected, becomes a fire which penetrates every nerve to the marrow of the bone. It pierces right through her entire being. The ordeal reaches its climax. The soul no longer looks for help anywhere. It shrinks into itself and loses sight of everything; it is as though it has accepted the torture of being abandoned. This is a moment for which I have no words. This is the agony of the soul.
98 When the soul comes out victorious from the preceding trials, even though it may stumble here and there, it fights on valiantly, humbly calling upon God, "Save me, I am perishing!" And it is still able to fight on.
At this point, however, the soul is engulfed in a horrible night. It sees within itself only sin. It feels terrible. It sees itself completely abandoned by God. It feels itself to be the object of His hatred. It is but one step away from despair. The soul does its best to defend itself; it tries to stir up its confidence; but prayer is an even greater torment for it, as this prayer seems to arouse God to an even greater anger. The soul finds itself poised on the summit of a lofty mountain on the very brink of a precipice.
The soul is drawn to God, but feels repulsed. All other sufferings and tortures in the world are as nothing compared with this sensation into which it has been plunged; namely, that of being rejected by God. No one can bring it any relief; it finds itself completely alone; there is no one to defend it. It raises its eyes to heaven, but is convinced that this is not for her-for her all is lost. It falls deeper and deeper from darkness to darkness, and it seems to it that it has lost forever the God it used to love so dearly. This thought is torture beyond all description. But the soul does not agree to it and tries to lift its gaze toward heaven, but in vain! And this makes the torture even more intense.
If God wishes to keep the soul in such darkness, no one will be able to give it light. It experiences rejection by God in a vivid and terrifying manner. From its heart burst forth painful moans, so painful that no priest will comprehend it, unless he himself has been through these trials. In the midst of this, the evil spirit adds to the soul's suffering, mocking it: "Will you persist in your faithfulness? This is your reward; you are in our power!" But Satan has only as much influence over the soul as God allows him, and God knows how much we can bear. "What have you gotten out of your mortifications," says Satan, "and out of your fidelity to the rule? What use are all these efforts? You have been rejected by God!" This word, rejected, becomes a fire which penetrates every nerve to the marrow of the bone. It pierces right through her entire being. The ordeal reaches its climax. The soul no longer looks for help anywhere. It shrinks into itself and loses sight of everything; it is as though it has accepted the torture of being abandoned. This is a moment for which I have no words. This is the agony of the soul.
106 Though these are frightening things, the soul should not be too
fearful, because God will never test us beyond what we are able to bear. On the
other hand, He may never send us such sufferings, but I write this because, if
it pleases the Lord to let a soul pass through such sufferings, it should not
be afraid but, insofar as this depends on the soul itself, it should remain
faithful to God. God will do a soul no harm, because He is Love itself, and in this
unfathomable love has called it into being. However, when I was so tormented, I
myself did not understand this.
107 O my God, I have come to know that I am not of this earth; You, O
Lord, have poured this profound awareness into my soul. My communion is more
with heaven than with earth, though I in no way neglect my duties.
115
+ When a soul has come out of these tribulations, it is deeply humble. Its
purity of soul is great. It knows better without need of reflecting, as it
were, what it ought to do at a given moment and what to forbear. It feels the
lightest touch of grace and is very faithful to God. It recognizes God from afar
and continuously rejoices in Him. It discovers God very quickly in other souls
and in its environment in general. The soul has been purified by God himself.
God, as Pure Spirit, introduces the soul to a life which is purely spiritual.
God himself has first prepared and purified the soul; that is, He has made it
capable of close communion with himself. The soul, in a state of loving repose,
communes spiritually with the Lord. It speaks to God without the need of
expressing itself through the senses. God fills it with His light.
The enlightened mind sees clearly and distinguishes the various degrees of the spiritual life. It recognizes [that state] when its union with God was imperfect: where the senses were involved, and the spirit was linked with the senses in a manner-exalted and special, to be sure but not yet perfect. There is a higher and more perfect union with God; namely, intellectual union. Here, the soul is safer from illusions; its spirituality is purer and more profound. In a life where the senses are involved, there is more danger of illusion. Both for the soul and for its confessor, prudence must play a greater part. There are moments when God introduces the soul to a purely spiritual state. The senses dim and are seemingly dead. The soul is most closely united to God; it is immersed in the Deity; its knowledge is complete and perfect, not sporadic as before, but total and absolute. It rejoices in this. But I want to say more about those moments of trial; at those times the confessor must have patience with such a soul. But the soul must have even greater patience with itself.
The enlightened mind sees clearly and distinguishes the various degrees of the spiritual life. It recognizes [that state] when its union with God was imperfect: where the senses were involved, and the spirit was linked with the senses in a manner-exalted and special, to be sure but not yet perfect. There is a higher and more perfect union with God; namely, intellectual union. Here, the soul is safer from illusions; its spirituality is purer and more profound. In a life where the senses are involved, there is more danger of illusion. Both for the soul and for its confessor, prudence must play a greater part. There are moments when God introduces the soul to a purely spiritual state. The senses dim and are seemingly dead. The soul is most closely united to God; it is immersed in the Deity; its knowledge is complete and perfect, not sporadic as before, but total and absolute. It rejoices in this. But I want to say more about those moments of trial; at those times the confessor must have patience with such a soul. But the soul must have even greater patience with itself.
140
Pure love is capable of great deeds, and it is not broken by difficulty or
adversity. As it remains strong in the midst of great difficulties, so too it
perseveres in the toilsome and drab life of each day. It knows that only one
thing is needed to please God: to do even the smallest things out of great
love-love, and always love.
Pure love never errs. Its light is strangely plentiful. It will not do anything that might displease God. It is ingenious at doing what is more pleasing to God, and no one will equal it. It is happy when it can empty itself and burn like a pure offering. The more it gives of itself, the happier it is. But also, no one can sense dangers from afar as can love; it knows how to unmask and also knows with whom it has to deal.
Pure love never errs. Its light is strangely plentiful. It will not do anything that might displease God. It is ingenious at doing what is more pleasing to God, and no one will equal it. It is happy when it can empty itself and burn like a pure offering. The more it gives of itself, the happier it is. But also, no one can sense dangers from afar as can love; it knows how to unmask and also knows with whom it has to deal.
200
O Jesus, how deeply it hurts the soul when it is always trying to be sincere
and they accuse it of hypocrisy and behave with mistrust toward it. O Jesus,
You also suffered like this to make satisfaction to Your Father.
580
On a certain occasion, the Lord said to me, I am more deeply wounded by the small imperfections of
chosen souls than by the sins of those living in the world. It
made me very sad that chosen souls make Jesus suffer, and Jesus told me, These little imperfections are not
all. I will reveal to you a secret of My Heart: what I suffer from chosen
souls. Ingratitude in return for so many graces is My Heart's constant food, on
the part of [such] a chosen soul. Their love is lukewarm, and My Heart cannot
bear it; these souls force Me to reject them. Others distrust My goodness and
have no desire to experience that sweet intimacy in their own hearts, but go in
search of Me, off in the distance, and do not find Me. This distrust of My
goodness hurts Me very much. If My death has not convinced you of My love, what
will? Often a soul wounds Me mortally, and then no one can comfort Me. They use
My graces to offend Me. There are souls who despise My graces as well as all
the proofs of My love. They do not wish to hear My call, but proceed into the
abyss of hell. The loss of these souls plunges Me into deadly sorrow. God
though I am, I cannot help such a soul because it scorns Me; having a free
will, it can spurn Me or love Me. You, who are the dispenser of My mercy, tell
all the world about My goodness, and thus you will comfort My Heart.
654
Now I understand that confession is only the confessing of one's sins, and
spiritual guidance is a different thing altogether. But this is not what I want
to speak about. I want to tell about a strange thing that happened to me for
the first time. When the confessor started talking to me, I did not understand
a single word. Then I saw Jesus Crucified and He said to me, It is in My Passion that you must seek
light and strength. After the confession, I meditated on Jesus'
terrible Passion, and I understood that what I was suffering was nothing
compared to the Savior's Passion, and that even the smallest imperfection was
the cause of this terrible suffering. Then my soul was filled with very great
contrition, and only then I sensed that I was in the sea of the unfathomable
mercy of God. Oh, how few words I have to express what I am experiencing! I
feel I am like a drop of dew engulfed in the depths of the bottomless ocean of
divine mercy.
666
I understood that all striving for perfection and all sanctity consist in doing
God's will. Perfect fulfillment of God's will is maturity in sanctity; there is
no room for doubt here. To receive God's light and recognize what God wants of
us and yet not do it is a great offense against the majesty of God. Such a soul
deserves to be completely forsaken by God. It resembles Lucifer, who had great
light, but did not do God's will. An extraordinary peace entered my soul when I
reflected on the fact that, despite great difficulties, I had always faithfully
followed God's will as I knew it. O Jesus, grant me the grace to put Your will
into practice as I have come to know it, O God.
1165
Know this, My daughter:
if you strive for perfection you will sanctify many souls; and if you do not
strive for sanctity, by the same token, many souls will remain imperfect. Know
that their perfection will depend on your perfection, and the greater part of
the responsibility for these souls will fall on you.
1293
It so happened that I fell again into a certain error, in spite of a sincere
resolution not to do so-even though the lapse was a minor imperfection and
rather involuntary-and at this I felt such acute pain in my soul that I
interrupted my work and went to the chapel for a while. Falling at the feet of
Jesus, with love and a great deal of pain, I apologized to the Lord, all the
more ashamed because of the fact that in my conversation with Him after Holy Communion
this very morning I had promised to be faithful to Him. Then I heard these
words: If it hadn't been
for this small imperfection, you wouldn't have come to Me. Know that as often
as you come to Me, humbling yourself and asking My forgiveness, I pour out a
superabundance of graces on your soul, and your imperfection vanishes before My
eyes, and I see only your love and your humility. You lose nothing but gain
much...
1566
When I was apologizing to the Lord Jesus for a certain action of mine which, a
little later, turned out to be imperfect, Jesus put me at ease with these
words: My daughter, I
reward you for the purity of your intention which you had at the time when you
acted. My Heart rejoiced that you had My love under consideration at the time
you acted, and that in so distinct a way; and even now you still derive benefit
from this; that is, from the humiliation. Yes, My child, I want you to always
have such great purity of intention in the very least things you undertake.
1584
O inconceivable goodness of God, which shields us at every step, may Your mercy
be praised without cease. That You became a brother to humans, not to angels,
is a miracle of the unfathomable mystery of Your mercy. All our trust is in
You, our first-born Brother, Jesus Christ, true God and true Man. My heart
flutters with joy to see how good God is to us wretched and ungrateful people.
And as a proof of His love, He gives us the incomprehensible gift of Himself in
the person of His Son. Throughout all eternity we shall never exhaust that
mystery of love. O mankind, why do you think so little about God being truly
among us? O Lamb of God, I do not know what to admire in You first: Your
gentleness, Your hidden life, the emptying of Yourself for the sake of man, or
the constant miracle of Your mercy, which transforms souls and raises them up
to eternal life. Although You are hidden in this way, Your omnipotence is more
manifest here than in the creation of man. Though the omnipotence of Your mercy
is at work in the justification of the sinner, yet Your action is gentle and
hidden.
(Diary
of Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-I-92, 94-98, 106-107, 115, 140, 200)
(Diary
of Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-II-580, 654, 666)
(Diary
of Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-III-1165)
(Diary
of Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-IV-1293)
(Diary
of Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-V-1566, 1584)
http://www.saint-faustina.com/Diary/DMIMS10.shtml
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