230. Seventh Friday of Ordinary Time
Meditations no. 103 (unofficial computer-aided translation)
Striving to please God in everything.
A prayer from todayâs liturgy offers us a good summary of Christian life: Grant, Almighty God, that with our thoughts always on the things of the Spirit, we may please you in all that we say and do.
Jesus spent his whole life on earth fulfilling Godâs will. My food, he told his disciples, is to do the will of him who sent me, and to accomplish his work. This is what our Father has taught us to do, following the teaching and example of Christ, in order that we might attain the holiness to which God calls us.
My children, I recently read in the holy Mass a prayer that is, as always, a splendid jewel, crafted from the most precious metal and set with the finest pearls. In it we ask God ut semper rationabilia meditantes, quae tibi sunt placita, et dictis exsequamur, et factis; that we may always think what is right and reasonable, and so be pleasing to you both in words and in deeds. How wonderfully Christian it is to ask God to give us the grace to act in a way that pleases him. And what is it that pleases our Father God? That we should be happy.
We are unhappy when we foolishly separate ourselves to follow the promptings of the fomes peccati (the âtinder of sinâ, the concupiscence) that we all carry within us. Besides, there is the attraction of what people call the world, which isnât the world that we love passionately. Then there is the constant activity of the devil, and the downward tug of the flesh. And this goes on all throughout life - whether at your age, my children, no matter how old you are, or at mine, and Iâm seventy-two. Iâm not so young as you, but the same things happen to me as to you. If someone thinks that the time will come when they wonât have to fight any more, and that is their reason for being in Opus Dei, then theyâd better leave. In the Work we will always have to fight, with a constant interior struggle.
My dear children, when you consider the prospect of the struggle that lies ahead, the sole aim of which is to please God in everything, donât think that youâre always going to be asked to make superhuman efforts. With the help of grace, everything is easy. Besides, for most people there are many times, long periods, when we donât encounter special difficulties, because we realize that our dedication is worth all the effort involved. But there are times when the triple concupiscence - lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life - blinds and confuses us, and leaves us stupefied. And then everything starts to be difficult, and the joy we felt on other occasions, the joy of being a holocaust and of burning ourselves on Godâs altar each day as we draw near to strengthen our youth: that joy disappears.
Today we tell Jesus once again that we want to fulfil, always and everywhere, the holy will of God. I have trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation. I will sing to the Lord, because he has dealt bountifully with me.
Struggling to fulfil Godâs will, even when we lack enthusiasm.
We need to keep advancing in our life of dedication, even though we may not experience any consolation. It doesnât matter whether there are feelings or not; what matters is having our head - and our heart -fixed on the path that leads to God.
If God gives us pleasant feelings, we are grateful because they make it easier for us to fulfil his will, to keep his commandments and counsels. At times God treats souls in the same way as we treat little children.
This is a classical comparison that ascetical and mystical writers of all ages have used. Babies are fed on their motherâs milk or on baby food, or nice soft things to eat like cake or bread⌠We never cease to be children, but we are also older and we have strong teeth. So God can give us solid food which is for the mature, for those who by practice have their faculties trained to discern good and evil.
Therefore, we should not do things out of feelings. If they come, then say: Thank you, my God, for giving me this sense of devotion that makes it easier for me to fulfil my duty! But when there are no feelings, you should still say: Thank you, Lord, because I know that I can count on your help to act in a way that pleases you.
Is it good to want feelings? It isnât bad to want them. But clearly it is more perfect not to ask for feelings. If God gives them, be grateful. But if they donât come, then donât ask for them. Itâs just as good to have them as not to have them, so long as we seek Godâs will in everything. Besides, once we start speaking about feelings we run the risk of looking only for doubtful devotions which are not very Christian, since theyâre not based on the Cross, and which could lead us astray. Thatâs why I avoid using the phrase âI feelâŚâ. Itâs true that at times Iâve written: âWe feel this or thatâŚâ because itâs difficult to find a more precise word. But the context makes it clear that Iâm not speaking about emotions and sentiments. Religion and Christian life are not matters of sentiment. God can give us great joy, great fervour, and great enthusiasm, just as he can send us terrible dryness, in order to help us to be transformed by the renewal of our mind, that we may prove what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
My children, I âfeelâ affection for you. But I insist that interior life is not a matter of feelings. When we see clearly that it is worth making the effort to sacrifice ourselves day after day, month after month, year after year, for a whole lifetime, because Love awaits us in heaven, then we will be seeing things in their true light. We should store all this up in our souls, my children. We should learn how to capture and retain, like water in a reservoir, all these graces from God: the bright clarity, the light, the sweetness of our dedication. And then, when the darkness of the night comes along, bringing with it bitterness and sorrow, we will plunge into those pure clean waters of Godâs grace. Even though at that moment I may be blind, I will still see. Even though I may be parched, I will be refreshed by the waters that flow from the Heart of Christ unto life everlasting. Then, my children, we will persevere in the struggle.
Trusting the Directors, who help us to be holy.
If we are firmly convinced that the only thing that matters is Godâs will, then regardless of the circumstances in which we find ourselves, we will always follow our Fatherâs advice and speak clearly in spiritual direction, without hiding anything.
Perhaps someone may say to me: âFather, you always tell us we have to speak clearly.â Thatâs because the only people who, after falling, stay down for a long time, until nothing can be done for them, are those who donât speak clearly. Iâm not ashamed to talk about what goes on inside me. The person listening is made of the same clay as I am. He is no angel. So he knows what it is to feel the tugging of the flesh, and of pride, and of vanity. The same âroaring lionâ, the devil, goes about trying to devour him. And the depraved things of the world wage battle against him, not because the world is intrinsically bad, but because we men have spoiled it.
Anyone who thought that the need to fight was something exceptional, and not part and parcel of everyday life, could not be admitted to Opus Dei because they wouldnât be an ordinary person. We would treat them with a great deal of affection. But we couldnât get too involved, even though we would try to help them in whatever way we could. Perhaps some people come to lose their way because they forget that they have to be watchful, and that they are exactly the same as the next person, and have to struggle in exactly the same way. At times, those children of mine have been waiting for great miracles from God, while overlooking the fact that the marvellous wonder of the Work lies in normal, common, ordinary, little things. What a joy it is when God once again enlightens us with these truths!
My children, always have great confidence in the Father and in those who represent the Father. They have a very special grace from God to love you a great deal, to understand you, to forgive you, to help you, and to be the strength you need in your weakness. Amid my own wretchedness, I too find myself strengthened by your virtue and your victorious struggle, and sometimes by your unsuccessful struggle, so long as there is always sorrow and repentance.
Never let yourselves fall into the temptation of thinking that the Directors command or condition you in some way. How can an intelligent person complain that there are some people who govern? If a man doesnât have Directors he has his employers, or a wife who bosses him around, or neighbours who annoy him, or officials who tell him not to drop litter. Thatâs why I would like you to make this firm resolution: Lord, quae tibi sunt placita, quae tibi sunt placita! (what is pleasing to you, what is pleasing to you!)
When we do things only to please God, then we put more love and more sacrifice into doing them. We donât stop and consider how âimportantâ a task is, materially speaking. Whatever importance it has comes from the affection we try to show God in doing it. When we are faced with something neutral or good in itself, we may say: âLord, I donât feel like doing this thing, but I will do it for you.â And then, my children, it becomes something fabulous. The alchemists of former times laboured in vain to find the philosopherâs stone that would turn all metals into gold. And we turn the tiniest material things into the glory of heaven. God will be sure to give us his help, so that, while always thinking what is right and reasonable, we may be pleasing to him both in words and in deeds.
Our Lady had no other desire in this world than to give herself over entirely to the fulfilment of Godâs will. We place in her hands our resolution from this time of prayer, and ask her to make us truly determined to fulfil it.