Thy Will be Done Part 3
We don't catch many glimpses of God's treasure in Holy Scripture, but what is our first "impression" which the Holy Ghost gives of His spouse?
"Behold the handmaid of the Lord. Be it done unto me according to thy word"
Thy Will be done. Like mother, like Son. Or in this case, like Son like Mother.
Unfortunately, we do not have an angel sent from God to tell us what God is calling us to do.
Actually, Our Lady didn't have the benefit of that grace for the most part either. She and St. Joseph had to work things out as best they could, without seeing their way clear. And they had it tougher than we do. Not many of us will need to stay in a barn, or be on the run across the desert to protect a child from murder.
We may not have an angel coming to us (although our Guardian Angel gives us nudges from time to time), but we do have our duty of state.
There is a prayer that goes something like this;
"Well, Lord, it's been a pretty good day so far. I haven't yelled at anyone or gossiped or complained.
But soon I'll be getting out of bed, Lord, and then I'm going to need Your help!"
Ah, me. How true.
Referring to the faithful accomplishment of our duty of state, a priest once said that if a person examines their day, they will probably be able to pinpoint at which point their day goes off track.
(cue hysterical laughter from an overworked mother with young children)
Okay, I'm not talking about a typical mother's day. Anyway, the spills and emergencies should be counted as a mother's duty of state anyway. They are her day and path to heaven. They don't get in the way of life. Those interruptions are her life and God's Will for the moment.
And I can say from experience that they end all too soon.
"The days are long but the years are short"
A mother should never think, "Aaarrrgh. I got nothing done today! It's been one problem after another!" Got nothing done? I bet those days are the the most sanctifying. At the end of the world we will see just how much a mother "got done" and how many souls she saved by the constant frustrating of her own will for the sake of her little ones.
But back to my original thought.
A priest once said that if a person examines their day. They will probably be able to pinpoint at which point their day goes off track.
The thing father was talking about was basically at what point do you let yourself get off track in your duty of state....whether it be a phone call that can wait. Or the 2 minutes to check an email that turns into 2 hours. That kind of thing which is simple procrastination, or better put.....resistance of the old man.
In Colossians 3:9-10 and again in Ephesians 4:22-24 St Paul talks about the old man. The old man is the tendencies of the flesh. The wounds of original sin if you will (ignorance, malice, weakness and concupiscence)
By grace we are given the 4 cardinal virtues;
Prudence to combat ignorance
Justice to combat malice
Fortitude to combat weakness and
Temperance to combat concupiscence
(but I digress!)
Anyway, the old man is also the one who is going to resist you in pretty much everything you do
By grace we are given the 4 cardinal virtues;
Prudence to combat ignorance
Justice to combat malice
Fortitude to combat weakness and
Temperance to combat concupiscence
(but I digress!)
Anyway, the old man is also the one who is going to resist you in pretty much everything you do
For the good which I will, I do not; but the evil which I will not, that I do. (Romans 7:19)
The battle never ends!
In our family we call the old man the inner brat.
A while back I heard my 8 year old strong willed daughter muttering to herself. She had been having a hard time getting her school work done (resistance).
I asked her what she was doing and she looked up and said, "I'm telling my inner brat to get to work!"
Good habits can go a long way to taming the old man, but he's always there, ready to get up to his old tricks. So if we are serious about following Our Lord in the faithful accomplishment of our duty of state, we have to get intentional. God gives us the grace, but we have to do our part. We have to "prepare our field for the rain of grace" as the story goes.
Mother Mary Loyola (a teaching sister who lived at the turn of the 1900's) wrote many books which have been reprinted by St Augustine Academy Press here
They are wonderful books, but my favorite is, "the King of the Golden City"
If you are not familiar with it you are in for a treat. It is the most beautiful book for children I have read. It treats of the spiritual life and the way to heaven in a story form about a little girl named Dilecta. (they have since adapted this story for boys too!)
One chapter tells about Dilecta and "self" and how she learns not to give in to self, but learn how to be firm with her.
If you are not familiar with it you are in for a treat. It is the most beautiful book for children I have read. It treats of the spiritual life and the way to heaven in a story form about a little girl named Dilecta. (they have since adapted this story for boys too!)
One chapter tells about Dilecta and "self" and how she learns not to give in to self, but learn how to be firm with her.
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