Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Road to Providence

Saint Therese of Lisieux
Saint May-of-the-Woods Campus



I was struck this morning as I was changing "The Quotable" how two days in a row I have been given a lesson by each of my patron saints. Even more ironic is the lesson this time on my journey to becoming a Providence Associate is on charism. By definition, "God's grace, given for the service and edification of all." Though the subject of prayer was long and took us two visits to complete, learning to look inward at one's own charism is really a daunting task. First, one has to accept that it is not being proud, but humble, when we acknowledge these gifts or talents.
ascribed to us by God. And then we must humbly accept them as our own. And so it was that yesterday's quote by Saint Therese gives me the courage to look inward, to truly find those gifts I must to share and to accept them graciously.

The only way to make rapid progress along the path of divine love is to remain very little and put all our trust in almighty God. ~~Saint Therese of Lisieux~~


Today's quote touches home, because the task of searching and knowing who I am (something God already knows) can cause me frustration and anger, for it is difficult to express who I am without realizing that, as I have journeyed these many years, I have neglected or failed to use these gifts properly or at all.

There is no sin or wrong that gives a man such a foretaste of hell in this life as anger and impatience. ~~Saint Catherine of Siena~~


Finally, defining who I am by the charisms is difficult, so I must rely totally on the Holy Spirit to guide me. The next few days leading to my visit with Sister Dorothy will be one of simple surrender to the Holy Spirit, for he will have to be my guide. I ask you all to offer prayers that this journey I take will be fruitful and rewarding. And when I come home from this journey, I will not find I am NEW, but RENEWED.

~~~^j^~~

Thanks be to God!!


10 comments:

  1. This is the stuff of great meditation, Cathy. Blessings on this journey! (Love the St. Patrick theme blog design!)

    ReplyDelete
  2. You will be in my prayers, Cathy. The Holy Spirit has been a huge source of consolation and wisdom and guidance to me over the last few years. I pray every day for the gifts necessary for only the Spirit can know what each day will bring and only God in His wisdom knows best what we need - and through Him, with Him and in Him, we can progress / proceed along the path, and do what we can in the building of His kingdom.
    I'm sure things will go very well with you Cathy along the road to Providence.
    The whole new look is very nice and took me by surprise!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Such a wonderful post - I think there are prayers in there for each of us- you will be in mine as you requested. I am certain renewal will be yours

    ReplyDelete
  4. What a wonderful post Cathy!! Also, Love the look of your blog:)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Cathy, your beauty shines through in this meditation, in your desire to humbly use the beautiful gifts our Lord has given to you. It does seem surprisingly difficult to acknowledge the gifts God has given us, to accept them as our own, and to do so humbly, then to use them adequately to give Him glory! May He guide you in the use of the precious gifts He has given you and be with you on your journey!

    I have left an award for you on my site... not sure how to link it to this comment though. I'm still learning!

    God bless you!
    Kim

    ReplyDelete
  6. I agree with Lisa...great prayer reflection here.
    (The blog looks great.)

    ReplyDelete
  7. I had to read your post 3 times to take it all in. It is absolutely lovely and filled with wisdom.
    Blessings on your faith journey.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Dearest Cathy,

    Thank God you are alright! I witnessed a man fall this morning in the parking lot of the supermarket. We have a lot of ice out here too. Thanks for visiting me! I see you too are a believer! Spread the love...Que notre Seigneur te benisse! Anita

    ReplyDelete
  9. Wonderful meditation:)

    I hope to write a Therese Lenten Reflection this Lent on my blog:).

    Love the new look blog:)

    Peace, JOY & love to you:)

    Marie xooxoxo

    ReplyDelete
  10. Cathy, I have a situation where I need to make my blog private for a short while. In order for you to continue to read, I need to add an email address for you to have access. Can you send that to me?

    abbey_rd99@yahoo.com

    If you have any trouble accessing after I set this up, let me know, please!

    Blessings,
    Abbey

    ReplyDelete

Your insightful comments are appreciated and I want all to feel comfortable and welcome.