“Daughter, give Me your misery, because it is your exclusive property.” (Christ to Saint Faustina, Diary 1318).
The other day I heard some news that made my own paltry little cross just a little more difficult to bear… It was nothing major and nothing terrible, but for some reason on that particular day, the news that I heard made the tiny cross in my life infinitely heavy and I could not seem to get on with things.
There I was, miserable and frustrated, with my tiny little cross firmly hitched onto my back, sitting there, like a hitchhiker on the side of the road waiting for a ride… And just like that hitchhiker carrying a heavy backpack, my shoulders ached, and my back hurt and my legs strained under the weight and I could not walk on.
I really was not sure what to do! After all I knew only one thing for sure and that was… There was no way I was going to have the strength to pick myself back up that day… That day that cross was so heavy that even if the jaws of hell opened in front of me, I doubt very much that I would have had the strength to move away from such a horror as that – even to save myself for eternity…
And so, I prayed. I could not get through a Holy Rosary or a Divine Mercy Chaplet. I could not even focus enough to finish an Our Father, Hail Mary or Glory Be. Instead, I prayed like this…
“God help me.”
That was it. No fancy words. Nothing else – just a mantra of “help me help me help me” all jumbled together like a child in a playground chanting for their turn on the swing. And yes – even though I adore my Beloved – I had not even the strength to unite my suffering to His on the Cross. And I had no excuse for this weakness.
And I told Him that... I had NOTHING to offer Him. NOTHING AT ALL…
And then – I remembered the words that Christ spoke to Saint Faustina, when He told her, “Daughter, give Me your misery, because it is your exclusive property.” (Diary 1318). And so, following the example of that great Saint, I gave my misery to my merciful Beloved in that moment.
And then – in that moment – my Beloved worked a truly magnificent miracle for me…
Now, before you ask – NO… He did NOT take away my Cross! After all, it is a very tiny Cross anyway and it is a small thing to offer for love of Him. And NO… He did NOT take away my pain! After all, what good is a Cross that we cannot feel… But YES… He did work for me a most wonderous miracle! So, let me explain how…
Right there, while I was offering my misery to my Beloved, a dear friend called me and told me about a problem – a very serious problem – that she was experiencing.
And there – right there – I got to work. You see, my friend’s cross is heavier than my own and there was no time to delay. Up I shot – Cross on back and apparently weightless now to me as I focused on the needs of my friend – and I began to start to pray for my dear friend.
You see, while I was tired of my own cross, I was not too tired to pray for love of my friend.
And this caused me to think about something else that my Beloved told Saint Faustina about His Passion and Death…
He told her that while He was on His Cross, His thoughts were consumed with Sinners – Saint Faustina wrote the words of Christ when He explained that He was thirsty for sinners…
“I thirst. I thirst for salvation of souls. Help Me, My daughter, to save souls. Join your sufferings to
My Passion and offer them to the heavenly Father for sinners.” (Diary 1032).
And in this way, I finally understood how Christ – the PERFECT MAN – could bear His Cross. Obviously – in His Divinity – Christ could bear all things… But how, I have often wondered, in His HUMANITY – perfect though it is – could He bear such suffering?
And the answer came to me in an instant through my prayers for my dear friend…
He bore all suffering for LOVE. And – more importantly – He bore all suffering for LOVE OF ME…
And with this Blessed Example before my eyes... I see that all suffering can be borne for LOVE…
And so it is that I take refuge in the comfort and mercy of my Lord as I dare to pray for the Grace to carry my Cross – tiny though it is – for LOVE of HIM…
For with prayer, I stand on Holy Ground where everything is clear. Here. At the Foot of the Cross.
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