Catholic Hermit: Law of God's Love

I continue to be intrigued and inspired by the Living Word of God.  Years ago, when confined to a hospital bed in my home for three months--my children quite young and my parents having come to care for us--I listened to audio tapes of the Bible.  My very favorite epistle was and remains the Letter to the Hebrews.  It spoke to me deeply then and does so now.

The following excerpt from Hebrews 10 brings forth, yet again, the reality of the laws of minds--even if these laws may be inspired by God.  Repeatedly in Scripture we are told that the laws of minds are limited and limiting in the temporal.  The law of God--the law of Love--is superior to all other laws.  The law of God's Love presumes and includes our desire for and willingness to do and be in God's will.

This nothing consecrated Catholic hermit, this morning, will ponder and rejoice in the reminder of that which is offered in love of God, not according to even the canon laws of the church--it is love of God in Himself and love of others that delights God, His Son, and the Holy Spirit.  

It is the law of Love that God desires of us.  The reality of this is quite freeing and up-lifting.  Our souls rise in thanksgiving and praise, in love of God.

Yes, by this will, by doing God's will, we have been consecrated through the offering of the Body of Jesus Christ once for all.

Brothers and sisters:

Since the law has only a shadow of the good things to come,

and not the very image of them, it can never make perfect

those who come to worship by the same sacrifices

that they offer continually each year.

First he says, "Sacrifices and offerings,

burnt offerings and sin offerings,

you neither desired nor delighted in."

These are offered according to the law.

Then he says, "Behold, I come to do your will."

He takes away the first to establish the second.

By this "will," we have been consecrated

through the offering of the Body of Jesus Christ once for all.

Another section of Scripture, from Psalm 40, further emphasizes the delight of the Lord is in obedience to and love of His will.  Jesus Christ came to fulfill the Father's will, to fulfill the law of God's love, to save our souls and to provide a living and eternal example for us to do likewise.

I recall years ago, not long after the car accident and my earthly spouse had decided being married to me was no longer wanted, I knelt in a church where my young children and I attended.  I repeated with my whole heart: Here I am, Lord; I have come to do your will.

Following this full offering by repeating the words of Christ, the Living Word of God--my life took a turn to a far more spiritual existence than what I ever could anticipate.  And this spiritual life included deep and real suffering.  But also, the Lord touched my life with His grace, with gifts and consolations.

Even now, however, I am weak.  I need the strong Christ-reminder of love of God and love of obedience to God's will, the love of Jesus Christ and desire for union with God-Is-Love.  I desire His love to rule my body, mind, heart, and spirit!  Nothing else seems to work out in this life nor to have meaning--if not for His will, His Love.

From Psalm 40, the words ring true and inspire me anew this morning when my body is filled with increased pain and weariness from interrupted sleep.  The purpose of my life--questioned in all the manual labor set before me in a temporal dwelling.  Is this God's will for me?

Ah, Love is His will; and thus yes, the manual labor for now is His will...as much as any temporal activity...as long as my full being is honed to loving Him above all things, desiring union in His Love, accepting all as an outflow of His Love.

I have waited, waited for the Lord,
and he stooped toward me.
And he put a new song into my mouth,
a hymn to our God.
Sacrifice or oblation you wished not,
but ears open to obedience you gave me.
Burnt offerings or sin-offerings you sought not;
and then said I, "Behold, I come."
I announced your justice in the vast assembly;
I did not restrain my lips, as you, O LORD, know.
Your justice I kept not hid within my heart;
your faithfulness and your salvation I have spoken of;
I have made no secret of your kindness and your truth
in the vast assembly.

So it was that from that day forth when I formally repeated the words of Jesus, I strove to be a living voice of the Lord Jesus Christ, in the here and now.  In and after the back-to-back back surgeries, loss of temporal career, loss of health insurance and financial stability, loss of pain-free body, loss of earthly spouse, loss of life as it had been--I became emboldened to speak of God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Yet in the hardships and sufferings of increasing trials and persecutions, it seems that over time I lost the ardor of sweetness in His Love.  I complicate my life by mere neglect of how easily present is His Love, how easy to just be a soul existing in His delight and residing in His trusted love for me.

His trusted love is true for each of us!  God loves us!

When I get wrought up in temporal problems, disappointments, weariness and concerns of the body, mind, and emotions--I can return to the lap of His Love by simply repeating the Living Words of Jesus Christ:

Here I am, Lord; I have come to do your will!

His will is His Love.

I do not know how to explain this truth, but it is true.  God's will is His Love.

Catholic Hermit Awakened

It has not happened in awhile, but it does now and then.  The Lord does speak to us in many ways; sometimes it is His Voice.  His Voice can be within, interior, or without, audible to the external senses.

In the wee hours, this nothing consecrated Catholic hermit was awakened by a distinctly audible voice saying, "Look at ME."

The voice was loud enough to abruptly shake the hermit from its sleep.  Immediate reaction: Who is in here?  Grab the flashlight and shine toward door opening, asking back, "What is it you want?"

In fact, the hermit was so taken back initially that it thought somehow perhaps it was at the daughter's home, and the grandson maybe called out, asking his grandmother to "look at" him.  But no, even before grabbing the flashlight to see who was there, the hermit was awake enough then to know it was on the mattress on the floor of the hermitage.  Was it an intruder, some imbalanced person asking the home owner to look at him?  

No one was in the doorway.  This hermit is well enough acquainted with locutions as well as with termporal reasons and answers, that this was easily recognized and discerned as God speaking.  (It was not a child's voice, although one cannot refute that Jesus can speak to us as He was as a Child.)  It could be God speaking through the hermit's angel, or God speaking through a saint, or God speaking through His Son.  Or, it could be God Himself, His Real Presence in oneness of the Trinity, by the power of the Holy Spirit, speaking, abjuring the hermit to look at HIM.

Regardless by Who or from whom the message was pronounced, audibly, firmly, loudly enough to awaken a mortal from a sound sleep (interrupted dream having no connection at all with the message spoken).  As soon as the hermit discerned the message to be not temporal but yet tangible, it knew the reason, the import.

"Look at ME."

This is easy enough to figure out.  This nothing consecrated Catholic hermit has been looking at all kinds of situations, people, things--distractions, all.  It has been following the political scene far too much and closely.  It has been internet researching with intent an appliance and other materials and ideas for use in the renovation tasks.  It has been distracted by grieving not being able to go to the parish closest, even though it is plenty far away.  It has been distracted by researching possible parishes with proactive and spiritually focused shepherd and flock.  Distractions!  Looking at all kinds of people, things, situations--when all that is asked of this hermit by God is to look at Him!

So in the darkness, the hermit began thinking of Jesus.  It looked at Jesus on the cross, at Jesus standing in the doorway, imploring the hermit, saying "Look at ME."  The hermit thought of Samuel when he heard the Voice call his name, audibly, distinctly, in the night so many centuries ago in another part of this world.  And it thought about Samuel's response once Eli the prophet explained to Samuel it was the Lord speaking, and how Samuel was to respond.

So this hermit responded likewise even if a few minutes after hearing the Voice, here, now.  "Here I am, Lord, I have come to do Your will.  I will look at YOU!  I am sorry that I have looked elsewhere far too much lately. I will stop looking so much at all else but will focus on looking at YOU."

After an hour or so of mulling and looking within at Jesus, within, and reading the Living Word of God for today's Mass readings, the hermit fell back asleep.  Upon awakening in the dawn, this time without being awakened by any voice, human or of God, the hermit at first started to think of various distractions, started to look at some news, then a product researched, and then yet another parish bulletin and Mapquest directions and length of time to drive to this one or that one which were notably vibrant and strong in the Catholic faith and spiritual life.

Then the hermit remembered:  Look at ME.

It shut off the distracting thoughts, and thought-flashed to the Lord, "Yes, Lord, I will look at YOU."

And so it is, and so it will, even though not perfectly, of course, for looking at distractions can be quite habit-forming.  But so can looking at Jesus be just as habit-forming--but a good habit, for sure.

God bless His Real Presence in us!  Little children, let us love one another, for God Is Love!