Life is for Learning:
We are not ‘our-own’! We are ‘gift-of-God’ / ‘children-of-God’. We are, in fact, the people – the “new” humanity – God is waiting for!
While we are desire ‘led-in-life’ (i.e. what each of us ‘thinks / feels’, ‘he / she’, ‘wants / needs’) we have to LEARN (i.e. come to realize) that – ‘at the end of the day’ – we make ‘our-own’ decisions. The ‘basic / fundamental’ choice facing, each of us is: will I be for “myself” or will I be for “others”?
Jesus came on earth to ‘distract’ us from our ‘distractions’, where – in terms of the world – we are caught-up, almost exclusively, in our ‘own selves’. He asked us to ‘look-up’ (from the horizontal) & see ‘above & beyond’ our own inherent human weaknesses / limitations. He said in John 10:10: “I came to give you the abundant life”: “Follow Me” as I “Follow My Father”.
The straight & narrow path in life is defined as: what’s “right, true & good”. It’s certainly not all about: “me”, “me” & “me”. All the latter strategy offers is: ‘malformation’, ‘malice’ & ‘misery’.
Decision Making:
The approach here is to: ‘look for light’! The key is the ‘cross’, which introduces the ‘vertical’ as well as the ‘horizontal’ perspective. It’s at the intersection of the vertical & horizontal that we get true focus / perfect aim.
Have you ever observed, that you may have all the good intentions ‘in-the-world’, but you end-up constantly frustrated. Be aware: you are ‘working’, most likely, on the horizontal plane, only, where DIS-FUNCTIONAL humanity reigns. What happens is: “desire” meets “resistance” & the result is “stalemate”: your personal outcome is: anger, pain & misery.
The ‘break-through’ formula is: SOLUTIONS are PROBLEMS ‘lifted-up’ to God. Jesus said: “When I am lifted up. I will draw all people to Myself” (John 12:32).
The Conundrum:
On the back cover of the Booklet, you can see a quotation from Ecclesiastes 3:15. It refers to the ‘baggage’ we, sometimes, are ‘burdened with’ in life. Because of this ‘load-on-our-shoulders’ we feel “STUCK” & without escape. However, there is an “ESCAPE BUTTON”: “God requires that which is past”. He wants all your life: ‘the good, the bad & the ugly’. He wants you to go forward ‘holding-hands’ with Him.
Tuning-in Spiritually:
The ‘heart-of-the-matter’ is the ‘matter-of-the-heart’. Mary & Joseph are our guides. In terms of God’s ‘Providential Transmission’ they were “open” & “trusting”. We need to be the same. We can become mentally attuned (spiritually) via the simple repetition of prayerful invocations, such as –
or, mindful of human needs (in general), say –
“Lord Jesus Christ, come in glory,
into all situations, now & forever”
Gratitude & Grace:
If the heart of ‘prayer-life’ is gratefulness: the heart of ‘practice-life’ is grace –
we thank you, we praise you, we adore you,
we hope in you, we trust in you & we love you, Lord Jesus;
give us grace, Lord, the fullness of grace, like Mary & Joseph,
to live the sanctity of your divine will, today & forever”.
The “Wedding Garment”:
In the parable of the Wedding Feast (Matthew 22:2-14) the “old” self does get a “look-in”, but is quickly “thrown-out”. It was banished, because it was not wearing a “wedding garment” i.e. the symbolic ‘cloak’ of the “new” self / the “new” humanity.
The “1-2-1” Concept:
It’s about connecting “one-to-one”. Note: Philippians 1:21: “For me to live is Christ”. Note, also: Romans 12:1: “My brothers & sisters, I implore you, by God’s mercy, to offer your very selves to Him, a living sacrifice, dedicated & fit for His acceptance, the worship offered by mind & heart”.