A tired brain and mind... my spirit however is alive and excited. When the brain and mind are tired however it is hard to put that excitement down in words and feelings. Working all night and having my world literally turned upside down will do that to me,so I appologize for any rambling today. I awoke to a dreary day, and am keeping in mind my little family at a State Park in South Dakota celebrating with Paul's brother Tony as he is marrying Julie as I write this today. Most of them are in the wedding... so thoughts and prayers are flying their way. Jesus, bless this couple as they start the journey called marriage/my most cherished cross. May they be blessed with many years of wedded bliss to carry them through the hard times and challanges as two become one. The "sandpaper effect" of rubbing off the rough edges one from the other can be less than wonderful, yet so important for our imortal souls!
It would be such a good thing if we could adopt the attitude in our marriages of that of a "trusting lamb led to slaughter." Ridding us of that pride that causes us to backlash when our faults are pointed out to us...rather than being thankful that we can now "see" our need to change with the help of the Holy Spirit... that is called that hard thing once again - Humility! How important and hard is that in a marriage? If we put each other ahead of our own wishes... that truly would be a happy and content marriage!
Pride is a hard thing to root out of us! It is so interwoven and so promoted this day and age with talk of our rights, and all the constant pleas to us that we deserve the best and the most "happiness" in all that we do and undertake! The thought that we would allow hard thing to happen to us, and for us to be kind of miserable due to life's circumstances - and say with a smile..."this is a good thing, and is making me a better person." That's super hard!
Pat and I are a far way from being able to do this together, but we do find that with prayer morning and night that we can be more loving and, yes, more accepting of the lessons we are taught in life that we need to serve one another - our most cherished cross!
Once again I am wanting to share the words of wisdom from my daughter, little Sister Hallel, to her sister, Nancy, on the occassion of her engagement to Bill. They both waited long and prayed hard for the love of their lives to appear, and the Lord answered this in His perfect timing, and now with their first child just a couple months away... the blessings continue to shower down upon them! This from Hallel... "My heart overflowed with joy for you. How beautiful to know that you have found your... most cherished cross. While I have never had the experience of being married, from what I hear is that he will truly be your cross. But not your cross as human eyes look at it, as a thing to run away from, as a thing of torture but rather as that which is truly the tree of life. It is only when clinging to the cross that one can truly live, it is the source of all life and of all love. Your marriage to Bill will be this, not something to run away from when it gets hard and when it hurts, but something to hold tight to, especially when it hurts because it is in this that you will find life and love. Know that it is through your marriage that Jesus wants to show you his great love for you and also that the best example that you can give to the world of Christ's love is a marriage lived in truth. So, in other words, know that I am so happy for you and that I love you a whole lot."
Jesus, give us the strength to embrace our most cherished cross.. we all know how wonderful hugs are and how safe and secure and loved that we feel when we are in that embrace... may we welcome that and hold our spouses close to our hearts, and may we feel the Lord's loving and forgiving arms circling us and bringing us together as the two become one! May I become less, and allow the Lord to work in my marriage, and to bring us to a better place of love, respect and humility! Jesus, we trust in you! Amen and Halleluia!
Bless-bless, Barb"The task that the world at present offers us, the moral renewal, the transformation and education of souls, is so immense that it may well confound us. What can be done in the face or evil and indifference by someone as obscure as I? Nothing of myself, no doubt, but all through and with God. I believe that in the good there is a great expansive force; I believe that no humble, unknown act or thought, seen by God alone, is lost, and that all, in fact, contribute to the good of others. I believe, according to the saying... that "when we do good we know not how much good we do." What we have to do is to work on ourselves, to accomplish our inner transformation, to fulfill our obligations and do all the good that we can, each day and each hour. Above all, we must ask God to fill us with intense charity. Charity is the love of God that renews and transforms us and our lives, and becomes the hidden source of our actions, our love of all creatures, our powerful and vital love of souls, our love for all who suffer or grieve. Such love can save the world."
Elisabeth Leseur (1914) was a French married laywoman whose cause for cannoninzation is underway.
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