Jesus, Live in My Heart

MEDITATION FOR DECEMBER 20TH - Prayer Before

“And the Light shineth in darkness and the darkness did not comprehend it . . . He came unto His own and His own received Him not” (John I, 5).

First Prelude: Behold our Divine Saviour, according to St. John in the Apocalypse, knocking at the door of our hearts and asking for admittance.

Second Prelude: O my beloved Saviour, let me be of the number of those who give Thee their whole heart, and in whom Thou canst take up Thy permanent abode.

FIRST POINT

IN WHAT SOULS JESUS DOES NOT TAKE UP HIS PERMANENT ABODE

Though our Blessed Lord desires ardently to dwell in our hearts, but few know how to secure His presence permanently. Divine grace is not imparted to all in like measure. This measure is determined by the receptiveness and the various needs of each soul. Does not the Lord dispense His gifts as He in His infinite wisdom sees fit? In many souls, however, Jesus cannot take up a lasting abode. They have, indeed, turned to Him with a contrite heart, but soon they relapse into their former sins, as though they had never repented of them. How our Lord should love to bestow spiritual gifts abundantly on all if they would only lay greater stress upon prayer, mortification, and self-denial!

Living, as we do, in voluntary distractions, yielding to sensual delights, dare we express astonishment at our spiritual dryness, at aridity in meditation or tepidity at Mass and Holy Communion? Perhaps we commit no grave faults, but are we not frequently guilty of minor transgressions, which darken our mind and rob us of delight in heavenly things? How great is such ingratitude toward the infinite goodness of God! He would dwell in our hearts, but we think not of Him; He would enrich us, but we are indifferent to His treasures; He would speak to us but we heed Him not; He would draw us unto Himself, but we elude His sweet attractions. Are not in such souls the words of St. John verified; “He came unto His own and His own received Him not” (John I, II)?

O soul, that cravest a few paltry alms from creatures, a few delights which cannot satisfy you, how happy, how wealthy could you be if you truly loved God! What peace should be yours were you to live for Him! Have you not yet experienced the truth of St. Augustine’s words: “Thou hast created our heart for Thee, O Lord; it cannot rest till it rest in Thee?”

Am I solicitous to prepare an agreeable and lasting dwelling place for our dear Lord? Have not my voluntary distractions and infidelities, the desire to see and be seen, often forced my good Jesus to withdraw from me, or at least hindered Him from imparting His graces to me generously?

SECOND POINT

WE FIND AND PRESERVE THE LORD IN SOLITUDE

The Lord desires to dwell in us mystically. The prophet Isaias has said of Him: “Verily, Thou art a hidden God” (45, 15), and St. Augustine assures us that he foolishly sought the Lord without, while He dwelt within his soul. If we would find the Saviour we must love seclusion and retirement, for who would find what is hidden must seek it in seclusion. Animated by a living and ardent love, we must retire into the secret chamber of our heart, close the doors of our senses and seek God in all sincerity through faith and love.

To souls that are guided by the principles of faith, love discloses what faith conceals. They feel an ardent desire to serve God, to labor for Him, to regain lost time, and to repair all former omissions and transgressions. Exercising themselves in the accomplishment of all the good to which grace inspires them, they acquire, more and more, the spirit of true zeal. Oh, that this heavenly fire would consume all worldly affections, all attachment to vain, earthly gratifications, and transform our heart into a well-garnished sanctuary of the Lord! O happy souls in whom the presence of the good God is so powerfully manifest! Such souls constantly feel themselves drawn to Him by fervent aspirations and intense desires! Possessing God in the depths of their heart inasmuch as this is possible here below, they are convinced of His most tender love, and neither life nor death shall be able to sever them from Him.

O blessed solitude, O hidden treasure of religious life! Far from the tumult of the world, far from creatures and distractions, religious souls fathom ever more the infinite affability of their Creator and become impregnated with His love. To them the words of the Saviour apply: “I have called you friends, because all things whatsoever I have heard of My Father, I have made known to you” (John 15, 16). They taste the delights of sweet converse with God, and like the saints are never less alone than when in solitude, far from creatures, they commune with God.

Affections: What happiness, O Lord, to hear Thy voice “Behold, I stand at the gate and knock” (Apoc. 3, 20). Lord, Thou wilt enter my heart! Oh, what an inexpressible grace for me! In Thy ineffable goodness Thou hast overlooked all my defects and shortcomings. Though I love Thee, Lord, and strive for virtue, I must fear Thou wilt find nothing in my heart that will please Thee. Oh, may Thy almighty grace inflame my poor, cold heart with the fire of holy love, so that in future it may belong wholly to Thee, that Thou canst possess it and rule it according to Thy good pleasure. O Mary, Mother of God, who wast so intimately united with Him, Whom heaven and earth cannot contain, prepare our hearts, that thou mayest be able to deposit thy Son therein with joy and pleasure, when He deigns to visit us in Holy Communion. With all the faithful of Holy Church we cry: “O Key of David and Sceptre of the house of Israel, who openest and no man shutteth; who shutteth and no man openeth; come and take out of prison him who is in fetters, and who sitteth in darkness and in the shadow of death.”

Resolution: I will frequently retire into my heart in the course of the day, and in silence hold communion with my Saviour.

Spiritual Bouquet: “Behold, I stand at the gate and knock.”

Prayer: O Jesus, living in Mary . . .

Prayer After