On Humble Attention to God's Word (IV)

On Humble Attention to God's Word (IV)

Write My words in your heart, and meditate on them earnestly; they
will aid you in temptation. Whatever you do not understand when you
read, you shall know in the day of My coming. I visit My chosen in two
ways; with trial and with consolation. Day by day, I teach them two
lessons, one in which I correct their faults, and the other in which I
encourage them to progress in virtue. `He who hears My words and
despises them has One who will judge him on the Last Day. (John 12:48)
--Thomas à Kempis --Imitation of Christ Bk 3, Ch 3

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October 5: - Saint Faustina

Today we celebrate the feast of Saint Faustina (1905-1938), mystic,
and “secretary of the Lord.” Throughout her brief life, Jesus appeared
and spoke to Saint Faustina, who faithfully recorded His words in her
diary, entitled “Divine Mercy in my Soul.” When she left this world,
she left this incomprehensible gift behind for the betterment of
mankind—detailing the Lord’s gracious gift of Mercy to the world.

“JESUS, make my heart like unto Yours, or rather transform it into
Your own Heart that I may sense the needs of other hearts, especially
those who are sad and suffering. May the rays of mercy rest in my
heart.”

Saint Faustina's struggles were like our own and on the outside her
life appeared rather ordinary. But, internally, her soul was
transformed daily through prayer and God's mercy. Through Saint
Faustina, Jesus Himself commissioned a painting that would portray His
mercy, known today as the “Divine Mercy” image. Jesus also taught her
to pray the chaplet of Divine Mercy, offering it for sinners and for
the world.

Throughout her short life, Our Lord assigned Saint Faustina three basic tasks:

1. To pray for souls, entrusting them to God's Incomprehensible Mercy;
2. To tell the world about God's Generous Mercy;
3. To start a new movement in the Church focusing on God's Mercy.

Saint Faustina struggled to follow God's Will in these three tasks, at
times struggling and finding it nearly impossible. Yet, through it
all—including suffering and sickness—she entrusted herself to the
Lord, relying on His mercy, and letting Him work through her, weak
though she may be.

Saint Faustina was born Helena Kowalska, the third of ten children, in
the small village of Lodz, Poland. She was able to finish only three
years of education, and as a teenager worked as a domestic servant for
other families. By the age of 18, she was convinced of her calling to
serve the Lord, but her parents objected to her entering the religious
life. Ever obedient, Helena attempted to forget her calling, but one
night, while at a village dance, Helena saw Jesus, sad and suffering.
The very next day she packed a small bag and went to the capital city
of Warsaw. After being rejected by several religious orders, she was
accepted by the Congregation of the Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy, an
order devoted to care and education of troubled young women. The
following year she received the habit and took the name Sister Maria
Faustina of the Most Blessed Sacrament. She served the Lord as a
Sister of Mercy for 13 years, during which she served her
sisters as cook, gardener, and porter.

Beginning in the 1930's, Sister Faustina began receiving from the Lord
a message of mercy that she was told to spread throughout the world.
She was asked to become the apostle and secretary of God's mercy, a
model of how to be merciful to others, and an instrument for
reemphasizing God's plan of mercy for the world. He said to her:

"If souls would put themselves completely in my care, I myself would
undertake the task of sanctifying them, and I would lavish even
greater graces on them. There are souls who thwart My efforts, but I
have not given up on them; as often as they turn to Me, I hurry to
their aid, shielding them with My mercy, and I give them the first
place in My compassionate Heart.” Jesus also asked that a picture be
painted of Him with the inscription: “Jesus, I Trust in You.” She
commissioned this painting in 1935, showing a red and a white light
shining from Christ’s Sacred Heart, representing the blood and water
that poured from His side.
by Jacob


Bible quote:
"Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye
shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye
shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than
raiment?" (Mat 6:25)


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Prayer Against Anger

O MOST meek Jesus, Prince of Peace, who, when Thou wast reviled,
reviled not, and on the Cross didst pray for Thy murderers: implant in
our hearts the virtues of gentleness and patience, that, restraining
the fierceness of anger, impatience, and resentment, we may overcome
evil with good, for Thy sake love our enemies, and as children of our
heavenly Father seek Thy peace and evermore rejoice in Thy love.
Amen.