Weary
of Heart-Take My Yoke
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July 20, 2017 Thursday of the Fifteenth Week of Ordinary
Time
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Matthew 11: 28-30
Jesus said: "Come to me, all you who labor and are
burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,
for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. For
my yoke is easy and my burden light."
Introductory Prayer: Almighty and ever-living God, I seek new strength from the
courage of Christ our shepherd. I believe in You, I hope in You, and I seek to
love You with all my heart, all my soul, all my mind, and all my strength. I
want to be led one day to join the saints in heaven, where Your Son Jesus
Christ lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God forever and
ever.
Petition: Lord Jesus, meek and
humble of heart, help me to take on Your yoke.
1. Come to Me: If you struggle daily to do what is morally
right even when those around you take shortcuts, then come to Jesus. If the
life of selfish pleasure and illicit gain seems exceedingly attractive, then
come to Jesus. If you are burdened with your patterns of sin and weaknesses
of character that affect your vocation as a spouse, a parent, a friend, a
consecrated soul, a Christian,… then come to Jesus. If life seems unfair and
God seems distant at best, then come to Jesus. We do not follow rules for the
sake of rules; we follow Jesus. Only when we have first come to him will we
understand the need for the rules which help protect the dignity of this
relationship.
2. Learn from Me: St. Paul admonishes the Galatians to live
in the freedom of Christ: "For freedom Christ has set us free. Stand
firm, therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery" (Galatians
5:1). One who is a slave of passion, vanity, selfishness or any other
vice is subject to that vice as something more powerful than oneself. Yet in
his letter to the Ephesians, St. Paul invites us to take on another “yoke”,
not that of slavery to sin but rather that of total submission to Christ in
love, becoming "slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from the
heart" (Eph 6:5). To take on the yoke of Christ means to entrust
my life to him freely with the intention of following where he leads.
Experience shows that he always guides us down the path that leads to our
happiness and fulfillment, even when it entails the cross.
3. Rest in Me: in Christ we find true “rest”. Notice that
Jesus does not promise to take away the burdens, the trials and the
sufferings of life. However, if we take his yoke upon ourselves, if we submit
to his plan, his will and his love, he promises that we will experience joy,
profound happiness and peace of soul. This is the rest that we all long for,
the rest that will one day be uninterrupted in the bliss of heaven. We have
each met individuals who experience this peace and joy despite their
circumstances. If I have never experienced it, then I can begin today by
giving him whatever I know in my heart he is asking of me. Although it may
hurt at first, it will be accompanied by the lightness of peace and the ease
of joy.
Conversation with Christ: Blessed Lord, You lead me towards everlasting peace if I will
simply follow, but following does not always seem simple. Give me the very
things You ask of me: faith, generosity, courage, trust, love. With these
gifts and your grace I will have the strength necessary for the
journey.
Resolution: Today I will pray an extra decade of the rosary for the
persons who are farthest away from Jesus.
Excerpts from the
DIARY of Saint Faustina Kowalska
57
O my Jesus, You are the life of my life. You know only too well that I long
for nothing but the glory of Your Name and that souls come to know Your
goodness. Why do souls avoid You, Jesus?-I don't understand that. Oh, if I
could only cut my heart into tiny pieces and in this way offer to You, O
Jesus, each piece as a heart whole and entire, to make up in part for the
hearts that do not love You! I love You, Jesus, with every drop of my blood,
and I would gladly shed my blood for You to give You a proof of the sincerity
of my love. O God, the more I know You the less I can comprehend You, but
this "non-comprehension" lets me realize how great You are! And it
is this impossibility of comprehending You which enflames my heart anew for
You, O Lord. From the moment when You let me fix the eyes of my soul on You,
O Jesus, I have been at peace and desired nothing else. I found my destiny at
the moment when my soul lost itself in You, the only object of my love. In
comparison with you, everything is nothing. Sufferings, adversities, humiliations,
failures and suspicions that have come my way are splinters that keep alive
the fire of my love for You, O Jesus.
My desires are mad and unattainable. I wish to conceal from You that I suffer. I want never to be rewarded for my efforts and my good actions. You yourself, Jesus, are my only reward; You are enough, O Treasure of my heart! I want to share compassionately in the sufferings of my neighbors and to conceal my own sufferings, not only from them, but also from You, Jesus. Suffering is a great grace; through suffering the soul becomes like the Savior; in suffering love becomes crystallized; the greater the suffering, the purer the love.
142 When I was set
at peace and taught how to follow God's paths, my spirit rejoiced in the
Lord, and it seemed to me that I was running, not walking. My wings were
spread for flight; I soared into the very heat of the sun, and I will not
descend until I rest in Him, in whom my soul has lost itself forever. And I
subjected myself totally to the action of grace. God stoops very low to my
soul. I do not draw back, nor do I resist Him, but I lose myself in Him as my
only treasure. I am one with the Lord. It is as if the gulf between us,
Creator and creature, disappears. For a few days, my soul was in a state of continuous
ecstasy. God's presence did not leave me for a single moment. And my soul
remained in a continuous loving union with the Lord. But this in no way
interfered with the performance of my duties. I felt I was transformed into
love; I was all afire, but without being burned up. I lost myself in God
unceasingly; God drew me to himself so strongly and powerfully that sometimes
I was not aware of being on earth. I had impeded and feared God's grace for
so long, and now God himself, through Father Andrasz, has removed all
difficulties. My spirit has been turned towards the Sun and has blossomed in
His rays for Him alone; I understand no more... [The sentence breaks off here
and begins a completely new thought in the next line.]
163 JMJ The Year 1937
General Exercises
+O Most Holy Trinity! As many times as I
breathe, as many times as my heart beats, as many times as my blood pulsates
through my body, so many thousand times do I want to glorify Your mercy.
+I want to be completely transformed into
Your mercy and to be Your living reflection, O Lord. May the greatest of all
divine attributes, that of Your unfathomable mercy, pass through my heart and
soul to my neighbor.
Help me, O Lord, that my eyes may be
merciful, so that I may never suspect or judge from appearances, but look for
what is beautiful in my neighbors' souls and come to their rescue.
Help me, that my ears may be merciful, so
that I may give heed to my neighbors' needs and not be indifferent to their
pains and moaning. Help me, O Lord, that my tongue may be merciful, so that I
should never speak negatively of my neighbor, but have a word of comfort and
forgiveness for all.
Help me, O Lord, that my hands may be
merciful and filled with good deeds, so that I may do only good to my
neighbors and take upon myself the more difficult and toilsome tasks.
Help me, that my feet may be merciful, so
that I may hurry to assist my neighbor, overcoming my own fatigue and
weariness. My true rest is in the service of my neighbor.
Help me, O Lord, that my heart may be
merciful so that I myself may feel all the sufferings of my neighbor. I will
refuse my heart to no one. I will be sincere even with those who, I know,
will abuse my kindness. And I will lock myself up in the most merciful Heart
of Jesus. I will bear my own suffering in silence. May Your mercy, O Lord,
rest upon me.
+You yourself command me to exercise the
three degrees of mercy. The first: the act of mercy, of whatever kind. The
second: the word of mercy-if I cannot carry out a work of mercy, I will
assist by my words. The third: prayer-if I cannot show mercy by deeds or
words, I can always do so by prayer. My prayer reaches out even there where I
cannot reach out physically.
O my Jesus, transform me into Yourself, for
you can do all things.
585 January 8, 1936. When I went to see the
Archbishop [Jalbrzykowski], I told him that Jesus was asking that I pray for
God's mercy upon the world and that there be a religious congregation which
would entreat the mercy of God for the world. I asked his permission for all
the Lord Jesus was demanding of me. The Arch bishop answered me in these
words: "As for prayer, I give my permission and even encourage you,
Sister, to pray as much as possible for the world and to beg God's mercy, as
mercy is what we all need; and I presume that your confessor certainly does
not forbid you to pray for this intention. But as regards this congregation,
wait a while, Sister, so that all things may arrange themselves more
favorably. This thing is good in itself, but there is no need to hurry. If it
is God's will, it will be done, whether it be a little sooner or a little
later. Why shouldn't it be? There are so many different kinds of
congregations; this one too will come to be if God so wills. Be completely at
peace. The Lord Jesus can do all things. Strive for a close union with God
and do not lose heart." These words filled me with great joy.
589 Love casts out fear. Since I came to
love God with my whole being and with all the strength of my heart, fear has
left me. Even if I were to hear the most terrifying things about God's
justice, I would not fear Him at all, because I have come to know Him well.
God is love, and His Spirit is peace. I see now that my deeds which have
flowed from love are more perfect than those which I have done out of fear. I
have placed my trust in God and fear nothing. I have given myself over to His
holy will; let Him do with me as He wishes, and I will still love Him.
607 In the midst of the worst difficulties
and adversities, I do not lose inner peace or exterior balance, and this
discourages my adversaries. Patience in adversity gives power to the soul.
622 Intimate communion of a soul with God.
God approaches a soul in a special way known only to himself and to the soul.
No one perceives this mysterious union. Love presides in this union, and
everything is achieved by love alone. Jesus gives himself to the soul in a
gentle and sweet manner, and in His depths there is peace. He grants the soul
many graces and makes it capable of sharing His eternal thoughts. And
frequently, He reveals to it His divine plans.
626 In the evening, during Benediction, my
soul was for some time in communion with God the Father. I felt I was in His
hand like a little child, and I heard these words in my soul: Do not fear anything, My daughter;
all the adversaries will be shattered at My feet. At these
words, a deep peace and a great interior calm entered my soul.
627 When I complained to the Lord that He
was taking my help away and that I would be alone again and would not know
what to do, I heard these words: Do
not be afraid; I am always with you. After these words, a
deep peace once again entered my soul. His presence penetrated me completely
in a way that could be sensed. My spirit was flooded with light, and my body
participated in this as well.
628 On the evening of the last day before
my departure from Vilnius, an elderly sister [131]
revealed the condition of her soul to me. She said that she had already been
suffering interiorly for several years, that it seemed to her that all her
confessions had been bad, and that she had doubts as to whether the Lord
Jesus had forgiven her. I asked her if she had ever told her confessor about
this. She answered that she had spoken many times about this to her
confessors and... "the confessors are always telling me to be at peace,
but still I suffer very much, and nothing brings me relief, and it constantly
seems to me that God has not forgiven me." I answered, "You should
obey your confessor, Sister, and be fully at peace, because this is certainly
a temptation."
But she entreated me with tears in her eyes to ask Jesus if He had forgiven her and whether her confessions had been good or not. I answered forcefully, "Ask Him yourself, Sister, if you don't believe your confessors!" But she clutched my hand and did not want to let me go until I gave her an answer, and she kept asking me to pray for her and to let her know what Jesus would tell me about her. Crying bitterly, she would not let me go and said to me, "I know that the Lord Jesus speaks to you, Sister." Since she was clutching my hand and I could not wrench myself away, I promised her I would pray for her. In the evening, during Benediction, I heard these words in my soul: Tell her that her disbelief wounds My heart more than the sins she committed. When I told her this, she began to cry like a child, and great joy entered her soul. I understood that God wanted to console this soul through me. Even though it cost me a good deal, I fulfilled God's wish.
653 April 25, 1936. Walendow. On that day,
the suffering in my soul was more severe than ever before. From early
morning, I felt as if my body and soul had separated. I felt that God's
presence had penetrated my whole being; I felt all the justice of God within
me; I felt I stood alone before God. I thought: one word from my spiritual
director would set me entirely at peace; but what can I do?-he is not here.
However, I decided to seek light in holy confession. When I uncovered my soul
to the priest, [134]
he was afraid to continue hearing my confession, and that caused me even
greater suffering. When I see that a priest is fearful, I do not obtain any
inner peace. So I have decided that only to my spiritual director will I open
my soul in all matters, from the greatest to the least, and that I will
follow his directions strictly.
+ June 29, 1936.
665 Father Andrasz told me to make a novena for the intention of knowing better the will of God. I prayed ardently, adding a certain bodily mortification. Towards the end of the novena, I received an inner light and the assurance that the Congregation will come into being and that it is pleasing to God. Despite the difficulties and adversities, complete peace and strength entered my soul from on high. I understood that nothing could resist or nullify the will of God. I understood that I must carry out this will of God despite obstacles, persecution and sufferings of all kinds, and despite natural repugnance and fear.
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.
674 I gave no answer to Jesus, but poured
out all my sorrow before Him, and Satan's attempts ceased. Jesus then said to
me, The inner peace
that you have is a grace, and suddenly He was gone. I felt
happy and unaccountably peaceful. Really, for so much peace to return within
a moment-that is a thing only Jesus can do, He, the most high Lord.
693 September 14, [1936]. The Archbishop
[Jalbrzykowski] of Vilnius visited us. Although he stayed with us for a very
short time, I still had a chance to talk with this worthy priest about the
work of mercy. He showed himself very favorably disposed to this cause of
mercy: "Sister, be completely at peace; if this is within the plans of
divine providence, it will come about. In the meantime, Sister, pray for a
clearer outward sign. Let the Lord Jesus give you a clearer knowledge of
this. I beg you to wait a little while longer. The Lord Jesus will arrange
the circumstances in such a way that everything will turn out all
right."
697 Jesus, You know that I love suffering
and want to drain the cup of suffering to the last drop; and yet, my nature
experienced a slight shudder and fear. Quickly, however, my trust in the
infinite mercy of God was awakened in all its force, and everything else had
to give way before it, like a shadow retreating before the sun's rays. O
Jesus, how great is Your goodness! Your infinite goodness, so well known to
me, enables me to bravely look death itself in the eye. I know that nothing
will happen to me without God's permission. I desire to glorify Your infinite
mercy during my life, at the hour of death, in the resurrection and
throughout eternity.
+ My Jesus, my strength, my peace, my repose; my soul bathes daily in the rays of Your mercy. There is nota moment in my life when I do not experience Your mercy, O God. I count on nothing in my whole life, but only on Your infinite mercy. It is the guiding thread of my life, O Lord. My soul is filled with God's mercy.
699 On one occasion, I heard these words: My daughter, tell the whole world
about My inconceivable mercy. I desire that the Feast of Mercy [139]
be a refuge and shelter for all souls, and especially for poor sinners. On
that day the very depths of My tender mercy are open. I pour out a whole
ocean of graces upon those souls who approach the fount of My mercy. The soul
that will go to Confession and receive Holy Communion shall obtain complete
forgiveness of sins and punishment. On that day all the divine floodgates
through which grace flow are opened. Let no soul fear to draw near to Me,
even though its sins be as scarlet. My mercy is so great that no mind, be it
of man or of angel, will be able to fathom it throughout all eternity.
Everything that exists has come forth from the very depths of My most tender
mercy. Every soul in its relation to Me will contemplate My love and mercy
throughout eternity. The Feast of Mercy emerged from My very depths of
tenderness. It is My desire that it be solemnly celebrated on the first
Sunday after Easter. Mankind will not have peace until it turns to the Fount
of My Mercy.
718 After Holy Communion, I heard these
words:- You see what
you are of yourself, but do not be frightened at this. If I were to reveal to
you the whole misery that you are, you would die of terror. However, be aware
of what you are. Because you are such great misery, I have revealed to you
the whole ocean of My mercy. I seek and desire souls like yours, but they are
few. Your great trust in Me forces Me to continuously grant you graces. You
have great and incomprehensible rights over My Heart, for you are a daughter
of complete trust. You would not have been able to bear the magnitude of the
love which I have for you if I had revealed it to you fully here on earth. I
often give you a glimpse of it, but know that this is only an exceptional
grace from Me. My love and mercy knows no bounds.
719 Today, I heard these words: Know, my child, that for your sake I
grant blessings to this whole vicinity. But you ought to thank Me on their
behalf, as they do not thank Me for the kindnesses I extend to them. For the
sake of your gratitude, I will continue to bless them.
751 And so You see, Jesus, that everything
is now up to You. I am perfectly at peace, despite these great urgings. For
my part, I have done everything, and it is now Your turn, my Jesus, and in
this way Your cause will be made apparent. I am totally in accord with Your
will; do with me as You please, O Lord, but only grant me the grace of loving
You more and more ardently. This is what is most precious to me. I desire
nothing but You, O Love Eternal! It matters not along what paths You will
lead me, paths of pain or paths of joy. I want to love You at every moment of
my life. If You tell me to leave, O Jesus, in order to carry out Your will, I
will leave. If You tell me to stay, I will stay. It matters not what I will
suffer, in the one instance or the other. O my Jesus, if I leave, I know what
I shall have to suffer and endure. I agreed to this with full awareness, and
I have already accepted it by an act of the will. It does not matter what the
chalice holds for me. It is enough for me to know that it has been given to
me by the loving hand of God. If you tell me to turn back and stay, I will
stay in spite of all the interior urgings. If You still keep them in my soul
and leave me in this inner agony even to the end of my life, I accept this in
the full consciousness of my will and in loving submission to You, O my God.
If I stay, I shall hide myself in Your mercy, my God, so deeply that no human
eye will see me. Throughout my life, I want to be a thurible filled with
hidden fire, and may the smoke rising up to You, 0 Living Host, be pleasing
to You. I'll feel in my own heart that every little sacrifice arouses the
fire of my love for You, but in such a silent and secret way that no one will
detect it.
757 November 19, [1936]. During Mass today,
I saw the Lord Jesus, who said to me,
Be at peace, My daughter; I see your efforts, which are very pleasing to Me.
And the Lord disappeared, and it was time for Holy Communion. After I
received Holy Communion, I suddenly saw the Cenacle and in it Jesus and the
Apostles. I saw the institution of the Most Blessed Sacrament. Jesus allowed
me to penetrate His interior, and I came to know the greatness of His majesty
and, at the same time, His great humbling of Himself. The extraordinary light
that allowed me to see His majesty revealed to me, at the same time, what was
in my own soul.
761 Jesus, my spirit yearns for You, and I
desire very much to be united with You, but Your works hold me back. The
number of souls that I am to bring to You is not yet complete. I desire toil
and suffering; let everything You have planned before the ages be fulfilled
in me, O my Creator and Lord! It is only Your word that I understand; it
alone gives me strength. Your Spirit, O Lord, is the Spirit of Peace; and
nothing troubles my depths because You dwell there, O Lord.
I know that I am under Your special gaze, O Lord. I do not examine with fear Your plans regarding me; my task is to accept everything from Your hand. I do not fear anything, although the storm is raging, and frightful bolts strike all around me, and I then feel quite alone. Yet, my heart senses You, and my trust grows, and I see all Your omnipotence which upholds me. With You, Jesus, I go through life, amid storms and rainbows, with a cry of joy, singing the song of Your mercy. I will not stop singing my song of love until the choir of Angels picks it up. There is no power that can stop me in my flight toward God. I see that even the superiors do not always understand the road along which God is leading me, and I am not surprised at this.
769 I have noticed that the Lord grants this
grace to souls for two purposes. The first is when the soul is to do some
great work which is, humanly speaking, absolutely beyond its power. In the
second case, I have noticed that the Lord grants it in order that kindred
souls might be guided and set at peace, although the Lord can grant this
grace as He pleases and to whomever He pleases. However, I have noticed this
grace in three priests, one of whom is a secular priest [probably Father
Sopocko] and the other two, religious priests [probably Father Elter and
Father Andrasz], and also in two religious sisters [probably Mother Michael
and Sister Mary Joseph], but not in the same degree.
779 The sight of this great majesty of God,
which I came to understand more profoundly and which is worshiped by the heavenly
spirits according to their degree of grace and the hierarchies into which
they are divided, did not cause my soul to be stricken with terror or fear;
no, no, not at all! My soul was filled with peace and love, and the more I
come to know the greatness of God, the more joyful I become that He is as He
is. And I rejoice immensely in His greatness and am delighted that I am so
little because, since I am little, He carries me in His arms and holds me
close to His Heart.
780 O my God, how I pity those people who
do not believe in eternal life; how I pray for them that a ray of mercy would
envelop them too, and that God would clasp them to His fatherly bosom.
792 I must never speak of my own
experiences. In suffering, I must seek relief in prayer. In doubts, even the
smallest, I must seek only the advice of my confessor. I must always have a
heart which is open to receive the sufferings of others, and drown my own
sufferings in the Divine Heart so that they would not be noticed on the
outside, in so far as possible.
I must always strive for equanimity, no matter how stormy the circumstances might be. I must not allow anything to disturb my interior calm and silence. Nothing can compare with peace of soul. When I am wrongfully accused of something, I will not explain myself; if the superior wants to know the truth, whether I was in the right or not, let her find out from others rather than from me. My concern is to accept everything with a humble inner disposition. I will spend this Advent in accordance with the directions of the Mother of God: in meekness and humility.
795 I have accepted the favor of this
treatment, but I am fully resigned to the will of God. Let God do with me as
He pleases. I desire nothing but the fulfillment of His holy will. I am
uniting myself with the Mother of God, and I am leaving Nazareth and going to
Bethlehem. I will spend Christmas there among strangers, but with Jesus, Mary
and Joseph, because such is the will of God. I am striving to do the will of
God in all things. I do not desire a return to health more than death. I
entrust myself completely to His infinite mercy and, as a little child, I am
living in the greatest peace. I am trying only to make my love for Him deeper
and purer, to be a delight to His divine glance...
797 When I was somewhat overcome by the
fear that I was to be outside the community for so long a time alone, Jesus
said to me, You will
not be alone, because I am with you always and everywhere. Near to My Heart,
fear nothing. I myself am the cause of your departure. Know that My eyes
follow every move of your heart with great attention. I am bringing you into
seclusion so that I myself may form your heart according to My future plans.
What are you afraid of? If you are with Me, who will dare touch you?
Nevertheless, I am very pleased that you confide your fears to Me, My
daughter: Speak to Me about everything in a completely simple and human way;
by this you will give Me great joy. I understand you because I am God-Man.
This simple language of your heart is more pleasing to Me than the hymns
composed in My honor. Know, My daughter, that the simpler your speech is, the
more you attract Me to yourself. And now, be at peace close to My Heart. Lay
your pen aside and get ready to leave.
799
Suddenly, I saw the Lord Jesus, who said to me, Be at peace, My child. See, you are
not alone. My Heart watches over you. Jesus filled me with
strength concerning a certain person. I feel strength within my soul. A moral
principle.
848 While I was saying the chaplet, I heard
a voice which said, Oh,
what great graces I will grant to souls who say this chaplet; the very depths
of My tender mercy are stirred for the sake of those who say the chaplet.
Write down these words, My daughter. Speak to the world about My mercy; let
all mankind recognize My unfathomable mercy. It is a sign for the end times;
after it will come the day of justice. While there is still time, let them
have recourse to the fount of My mercy; let them profit from the Blood and
Water which gushed forth for them.
O human souls, where are you going to hide on the day of God's anger? Take refuge now in the fount of God's mercy. O what a great multitude of souls I see! They worshiped the Divine Mercy and will be singing the hymn of praise for all eternity.
853 In the evening, a great longing took
possession of my soul. I took the pamphlet with the Image of the Merciful
Jesus on it and pressed it to my heart, and the following words burst forth
from my soul: "Jesus, Eternal Love, I live for You, I die for You, and I
want to become united with You." Suddenly I saw the Lord in His
inexpressible beauty. He looked at me graciously and said, My daughter, I too came down from
heaven out of love for you; I lived for you, I died for you, and I created
the heavens for you. And Jesus pressed me to His Heart and
said to me, Very soon
now; be at peace, My daughter.When I was alone, my soul was
set afire with the desire to suffer until the moment when the Lord would say,
"Enough." And even if I were to live for thousands of years, I see
in the light of God that that is but one moment. Souls ...[unfinished
thought].
887
January 19, 1937. My life at present flows on in peaceful awareness of God.
My silent soul lives on Him, and this conscious life of God in my soul is for
me a source of happiness and strength. I do not look for happiness outside
the depths of my soul in which God dwells; of this I am aware. I feel a
certain need to share myself with others. I have discovered a fountain of
happiness in my soul, and it is God. O my God, I see that everything that
surrounds me is filled with God, and most of all my own soul, which is
adorned with the grace of God. Already now, I will begin to live on that on
which I shall live for all eternity.
895 January 23, [1937]. I did not feel like
writing today. Then I heard a voice in my soul:My daughter, you do not live for
yourself but for souls; write for their benefit. You know that My will as to
your writing has been confirmed many times by your confessors. You know what
is pleasing to Me, and if you have any doubts about what I am saying, you
also know whom you are to ask. I grant him light to pronounce judgment on my
case. My eye watches over him. My daughter, you are to be like a child
towards him, full of simplicity and candor. Put his judgment above all My
demands. He will guide you according to My will. If he doesn't allow you to
carry out My demands, be at peace; I will not judge you, but the matter will
remain between Me and him. You are to be obedient.
952 My Jesus, You see that Your holy will
is everything to me. It makes no difference to me what You do with me. You
command me to set to work-and I begin calmly, although I know that I am
incapable of it; through Your representatives, You order me to waitso I wait
patiently; You fill my soul with enthusiasmbut You do not make it possible
for me to act; You attract me to yourself in heaven-and You leave me in this
world; You pour into my soul a great yearning for yourself-and You hide
yourself from me. I am dying of the desire to be united with You forever, and
You do not let death come near me. O will of God, you are the nourishment and
delight of my soul. When I submit to the holy will of my God, a deep peace
floods my soul.
O my Jesus, You do not give a reward for the successful performance of a work, but for the good will and the labor undertaken. Therefore, I am completely at peace, even if all my undertakings and efforts should be thwarted or should come to naught. If I do all that is in my power, the rest is not my business. And therefore the greatest storms do not disturb the depths of my peace; the will of God dwells in my conscience.
967 + When I set to work at underlining the
Lord's words and thus was going through everything in sequence, I reached the
page where I had marked down Father Andrasz's advice and directions. I did
not know what to do, to underline or not to underline, and then I heard these
words in my soul: Underline,
because these words are Mine; I have borrowed the lips of the friend of My
Heart in order to speak to you and reassure you. You are to observe these
directions until your death. It would not please Me at all if you were to
disobey these directions. Know that it is I who have placed him between
Myself and your soul. I am doing this to set you at peace and so that you may
not err.
968 Since
I have placed you in this priest's special care, you are thus exempted from
giving a detailed account to your superiors concerning My relationship with
you. In all other matters, be as a child with your superiors, but whatever I
do in the depths of your soul is to be told, with all frankness, only to the
priests.
And I have noticed that, from the time God gave me a spiritual director, He has not required me to report everything to the superiors, as was the case before, but only that which concerns external matters; apart from this, only the director knows my soul. To have a spiritual director is a special grace of God. Oh, how few have received it! The soul remains in constant peace amidst the greatest difficulties. Every day after Holy Communion, I thank the Lord Jesus for this grace, and every day I ask the Holy Spirit to enlighten him. I have truly experienced in my soul what power the director's words have. Blessed be God's mercy for this grace!
989 My Lord and my God, You know that it is
You alone whom my soul has come to love. My soul is entirely drowned in You,
O Lord. Even if I did not accomplish any of the things that You have made
known to me, O Lord, I would be completely at peace because I would have done
what I could.
1048 Then, in an instant, I was caught up
to stand near Jesus, and I stood on the altar next to the Lord Jesus, and my
spirit was filled with a happiness so great that I am unable to comprehend it
or write about it. A profound peace as well as repose filled my soul. Jesus
bent toward me and said with great kindness, What is it you desire, My daughter? And
I answered, "I desire worship and glory be given to Your mercy." I already am receiving worship by
the institution and celebration of this Feast; what else do you desire?
I then looked at the immense crowd worshiping The Divine Mercy and I said to
the Lord, "Jesus, bless all those who are gathered to give glory to You
and to venerate Your infinite mercy." Jesus made a sign of the cross
with His hand, and this blessing was reflected in the souls like a flash of
light. My spirit was engulfed in His love. I felt as if I had dissolved and
disappeared completely in God. When I came to myself, a profound peace was
flooding my soul, and an extraordinary understanding of many things was
communicated to my intellect, an understanding that had not been granted me
previously.
1067 March 28. Resurrection. During the
Mass of Resurrection, I saw the Lord in beauty and splendor, and He said to
me, My daughter, peace
be with you. He blessed me and disappeared, and my soul was
filled with gladness and joy beyond words. My heart was fortified for
struggle and sufferings.
1069 March 29, 1937. During meditation
today, I saw the Lord in great beauty, and He said to me, Peace be to you, My daughter.
My whole soul trembled with love for Him and I said, "O Lord, although I
love You with all my heart, please do not appear to me, because my spiritual
director has told me that these sudden appearances of Yours arouse the
suspicion that You could be an illusion. And although I love You more than my
own life, and I know that You are my Lord and God, who are communing with me,
I must above all be obedient to my confessor."
Jesus listened to my words with gravity and kindness and spoke these words to me: Tell your confessor that I commune with your soul in such an intimate manner because you do not steal My gifts, and this is why I pour all these graces upon your soul, because I know that you will not hoard them for yourself. But as a sign that his prudence is agreeable to Me, you shall not see Me, and I will not appear to you in this way until you have given him an account of what I have just said.
1072 + April 3, 1937. Today, the Lord said
to me, Tell the
Reverend Professor [probably Father Theodore [186] ] that I desire that on the Feast of
My Mercy he deliver a sermon about My fathomless mercy. I
fulfilled God's wish, but the priest did not want to acknowledge the Lord's
message. When I left the confessional, I heard these words: Do as I tell you and be at peace;
this matter is between him and Me. You will not be held responsible for this.
1074 When I went for adoration, I heard
these words: My
beloved daughter, write down these words, that today My Heart has rested in
this convent [the Cracow house]. Tell the world about My mercy and
My love.
The flames of mercy are burning me. I desire to pour them out upon human souls. Oh, what pain they cause Me when they do not want to accept them! My daughter, do whatever is within your power to spread devotion to My mercy. I will make up for what you lack. Tell aching mankind to snuggle close to My merciful Heart, and I will fill it -with peace. Tell [all people], My daughter, that I am Love and Mercy itself. When a soul approaches Me with trust, I fill it with such an abundance of graces that it cannot contain them within itself, but radiates them to other souls. 1075 Souls who spread the honor of My mercy I shield through their entire lives as a tender mother her infant, and at the hour of death I will not be a Judge for them, but the Merciful Savior. At that last hour, a soul has nothing with which to defend itself except My mercy. Happy is the soul that during its lifetime immersed itself in the Fountain of Mercy, because justice will have no hold on it.
1076 Write
this: Everything that exists is enclosed in the bowels of My mercy, more
deeply than an infant in its mother's womb. How painfully distrust of My
goodness wounds Me! Sins of distrust wound Me most painfully.
1090 And this happened on the last day of
my novena to the Holy Spirit. After this return to health, I found myself
united with the Lord Jesus in a purely spiritual way. Jesus gave me strong
assurances; that is, He confirmed me in respect to His demands. I remained
close to the Lord Jesus all that day and talked with Him about the details
concerning that congregation.
Jesus infused my soul with power and courage to act. Now I understand that if the Lord demands something of a soul, He gives it the means to carry it out, and through grace He makes it capable of doing this. So, even if the soul be utterly miserable, at the Lord's command it can undertake things beyond its expectation, because this is the sign by which it can be known that the Lord is with that soul: if God's power and strength, which make the soul courageous and valiant, is manifest within it. As for myself, I am always at first a bit frightened at the Lord's greatness, but afterwards my soul is filled with profound peace which nothing can disturb, as well as an inner strength to do what the Lord is demanding at that particular moment....
1097 Since that time, I have been living
under the virginal ', cloak of the Mother of God. She has been guarding me
and instructing me. I am quite at peace, close to Her Immaculate Heart.
Because I am so weak and inexperienced, I nestle like a little child close to
Her heart.
1121
May 6, [1937]. The Ascension of Our Lord.
Since early this morning, my soul has been touched by God. After Holy Communion, I communed for a while with the heavenly Father. My soul was drawn into the glowing center of love. I understood that no exterior works could stand comparison with pure love of God... I saw the joy of the Incarnate Word, and I was immersed in the Divine Trinity. When I came to myself, longing filled my soul, and I yearned to be united with God. Such tremendous love for the heavenly Father enveloped me that I call this day an uninterrupted ecstasy of love. The whole universe seemed to me like a tiny drop in comparison with God. There is no greater happiness than when God gives me to know interiorly that every beat of my heart is pleasing to Him, and when He shows me that He loves me in a special way. This strong inner conviction, by which God assures me of His love for me and of how much my soul pleases Him, brings deep peace to my soul. Throughout this day I was unable to take any food; I felt gratified to the full with love.
1134 The Lord has poured such a depth of
peace into my soul that nothing will disturb it any more. Despite everything
that goes on around me, I am not deprived of my peace for a moment. Even if
the whole world were crumbling, it would not disturb the depth of the silence
which is within me and in which God rests. All events, all the various things
which happen are under His foot.
1152 It is no easy thing to bear sufferings
joyfully, especially those which are unmerited. Fallen nature rebels, and
although the intellect and will are above suffering, because they are able to
do good to those who inflict suffering on them, nevertheless the emotions
raise a lot of noise and, like restless spirits, attack the intellect and
will. But when they see they cannot do anything by themselves, they quiet
down and submit to the intellect and will. Like some kind of hideousness,
they rush in and stir up a row, bent on making one obey them alone so long as
they are not curbed by the intellect and will.
(Diary
of Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-I-57, 142, 163)
(Diary
of Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-II-585, 589, 607, 622, 626, 627-628, 653)
(Diary
of Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-II-665-666, 674, 693, 697, 699, 718-719)
(Diary
of Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-II-751, 757, 761, 769, 779-780, 792, 795)
(Diary
of Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-II-797, 799, 848, 853, 887, 895, 952,
967)
(Diary
of Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-II-968, 989)
(Diary
of Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-III-1048, 1067, 1069, 10721074-1075)
(Diary
of Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-III-1090, 1097, 1121, 1134, 1152)
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