My friend is (at some point in the undetermined future) going to lose a very close loved one. The thought of this is causing this person to hate God. I have seen this as a very typical reaction to the loss of a loved one. "Why would God take this person away from me?" "What did I do to lose this person?" These questions seem to come up. They put God in a light that screams "Unjust!" How far from the truth! Our God is a very just God. If a person dies in a state of grace (which the person my friend is losing must be, the person is one of my role models), then the reward of Heaven is theirs! How can we be mad at God for making our loved one eternally happy? The only injustice I can see is that this person gets to taste heaven! I am going to quote St. Therese of Lisieux's mother on this one, for I have never read or seen anything that better describes the mindset we must have about death.
Baby [Therese] is a little imp; she'll kiss me and at the same time wish me to die. "Oh, how I wish you would die, dear little mother!" When I scold her she answers "It is because I want you to go to heaven and you say we must die to get there!" She wishes the same for her Father in her outbursts of affection for him.
This marvelous saint teaches us what Christian life really is. Christian life is not about life on this earth, it is about attaining life for the next. The losses we suffer in this life, when united to the Cross of Christ, fuel the intense fire that leads us to the gates of Heaven. It is a long, arduous journey, but we all can make it! The largest problem that gets in the way is pride. We all want things our way. This has been the hardest obstacle I have to overcome in my spiritual journey. I do not want this wonderful person my friend is losing to die. That is not my will for him to die, however, it is God's. And in this way, in humility, I must accept the fact that this person is so important to God, that He must take this person earlier than any of us would like. It is SO difficult to have the humility to accept something in God's will that is gravely contrary to our own. However, true, pure happiness comes when our will is united with God's will. God is all-knowing and all-powerful. He knows infinitely better than we do what will make us happy. No matter how intense the struggle is, God knows the end result is worth the pain. The union with God in Heaven is the greatest reward any of us can ever attain. It is greater than any title, greater than any material good, and yes, even greater than our own will. We fall into sin for Satan knows that our will is easily twisted. This is where Satan wins, and where we crush him. In the tough times when it is hard to trust that God's plan is the best plan for us, Satan slithers in and plants lies in our head that tell us God is wrong. God is not wrong. God is pure love who manifests his love in even the most painful of situations. Overcoming the lies that Satan has placed in our minds about death is where the fight is. The antidote to the poison of these lies is humility.
So Lord I humbly pray that your will is united with our will. Through this we have the power to destroy Satan. Your humble son, Jesus Christ, went through human suffering in order to show us what it takes to get to you. He humbly accepted his cross and led us up the hill to calvary. Let us humbly pick up our crosses and follow you. Let Jesus not rebuke us as he did Peter when Peter tried to talk Christ out of the cross. Satan is at work in those lies, and we must realize our Christian duty to follow your son up the hill. Through humble hearts, may we destroy Satan and seek the everlasting joy of Heaven. No joy on earth can possibly equal the joy of Heaven. With this idea in mind, let us cast our sin aside and focus on you love and Peace. We ask this through Christ our Lord.
God's peace to all. Do not be afraid to struggle. Do not be afraid to seek a friend to help you bear the load of your cross. Even Christ needed help carrying his. Pax Christi.
No comments:
Post a Comment