From Dire Straits to Hope

In this meditation, Fr. Leo Austin draws upon lessons from Scripture as he encourages us to pray for the grace to take better advantage of difficulties and darkness in order to develop a deeper interior life. This movement from discouragement to hope occurs especially in the faculty of our memory, when we process our own reactions in our personal conversation with God. 

As St. Josemaria wrote in The Forge, no.158: "When our vision is clouded, when our eyes have lost their clarity, we need to go to the light. And Jesus Christ has told us that he is the Light of the world and that he has come to heal the sick.—That is why your weaknesses and your falls — when God allows them—should not separate you from Christ, but rather draw you closer to him!" 

PAUSE AND REFLECT: 

• How did I react in a past moment of difficulty or darkness? How could I turn more quickly to Christ's light next time? 
• How do I use my memory in my conversations with God, to pass my past reactions through the heart of Christ so that he can purify me? 
• Do I feel spiritually stuck in any way–in my social life or professional life, or by facing my limitations–and how could I instead take this as an opportunity for growth? 
• Do I hear myself when I voice discouragement? How can I also hear, perhaps in louder volume, the voice of Jesus Christ telling me to lean more on His grace? 
• What are the “false shelters” under which I tend to hide? 

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