Easter Meditation

Book 3 Chapter 2: How God Speaks within Us without Sound of Words

“I humbly implore You, ‘Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening’ (1 Samuel 3:9)”.

How often have I been asked, “Why can’t I heard God?” Why doesn’t God speak to me like He does to other people?”  You do not hear God because you don’t know how to listen to His words. God’s words are spoken throughout the Bible; from the Book of Genesis to the Book of Revelation.  The problem is that when we read His words, we do not hear His message.  Many times when we read the Bible or listen to the reading at church, all we hear is the words.  It is only when we open our hearts and let Him in do we hear “the meaning.”  God speaks within our hearts and moves us when we open ourselves to his message.  It is only through God that the mysteries of His words are revealed.  The words of God point out the way, but it is God who gives us “the strength to walk in it.” We must seek God to hear God.  Most importantly, we must ask God to speak to us.  We must ask Him to open our hearts so that we can hear His gentle whispers.  The stories in the Bible give us an outward message, but it is God who instructs and enlightens the heart. While these stories may provide the water for our soul, but it is God who causes the soul to grow.  Pray to hear His message and then quite your heart to hear Him.  Read His words and then let them flow through your mind. Let God take over and you will hear Him loud and clear.

A Simple Prayer

Speak to me Yourself, Lord, for your servant is listening (1 Samuel 3:9).

You alone have the words of eternal life (John 6:69).

Speak them to me that they may comfort my soul, and help me to amend my whole life.

Yours in Christ

Michael Marcon

 

Easter Meditation

My Dearest Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

Book 3 Chapter 1: On the Way Christ Speaks Inwardly to the Soul

“Blessed in the soul who hears the Lord speaking within, and from His lips receives the words of comfort.”

Today we begin the third book in the Imitation of Christ. This book deals with interior conversation between God and yourself.  We cannot know Christ unless we meet Him.  If we do not meet Him, how can we fall in love with Him? Now that we have met Him and let Him into our hearts, it is time to fall deeply in love with Him.  A love that is so satisfying, that all the worldly treasures cannot equate to what He has to offer to us.  To fall deeply in love, we must be willing to listen to those “inner whisperings of the Lord.” More importantly, we must learn to ignore the deceitful noise which is all around because that noise tries to distract us and lead us away from Him who is love. It is only those gentle inward voices of God that teach the truth and show us the light.  How often does the world scream out offensive lies and cover us in darkness?  Why is it that we buy into these lies? We try to find joy in these empty promises and material things that make up this world.  “Blessed are the eyes which are closed to things outside, but gaze intently on the things within.”  Where our eyes are focused, so is our heart.  Where our eyes are trained so goes our steps.  We are called to find joy in doing spiritual and corporal works. It is in our outwardly actions that we tell God our interior motivations.  If we serve God alone, we will not become hindered by the distractions of the world.  How long is it going to takes us to realize that we cannot find interior peace in the world?  There is no comfort in the world, but only in Christ.  Christ tells us that “He is our salvation, our peace, and our life; keep close to Him, and in Him you will find peace.”  Christ Jesus is the only source of eternal love; everything else is fleeting and short lived.  The only eternal happiness is in Him who created us to love Him and Him us.

A Simple Prayer 

“Listen, O my soul, to what has been said, and

Close the door of my senses that I may hear inwardly

What the Lord Jesus speaks within my soul.”

Yours in Christ

Michael Marcon

FW: Easter Meditation

My Dearest Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

Book 2 Chapter 12: On the Royal Road to the Cross

“Anyone who wishes to follow Me must deny self, take up the cross, and follow Me” (Matthew 16:24).

It is not by accident that on this Friday we are given the message of the Way of the Cross.  It was on Friday that Christ was crucified and died for our sins.  While I did not plan this reading today, Christ planned it for us. Take the time to spend an extra few minutes meditating on the joyful wonders on the cross. The last chapter in Book 2 on the Interior Life is all about seeking the cross – not avoiding it. Being a follower of Christ and trying to imitate His life is not an easy task.  Christ calls all of us to “Come follow Me”.  This message was first given to His Apostles and now it is given to each of us.  We have the choice; we can follow Him or we can deny Him.  To follow Him, you will need your cross.  If on your judgment day you do not have your cross, how do you expect to get into heaven?  Those who “made themselves like Christ Crucified, will go with great confidence before Christ their judge.”  When the rich man confronted Christ and asked what he needed to do to get into heaven, Jesus told him to give up everything and “Come follow Me.”  This was too great a burden and left very sad. He could not carry the cross. To take up the cross means to give up everything for Christ; not just one hour on Sunday or the occasional retreat. We must live for Christ 24-7. Without the cross there is no hope of salvation.  We must remember that Christ was sent to show us the way, the truth and the light.  Jesus went before us carrying His cross on which He gave His life for us out of His unselfish love for us. Bearing the cross means that we must accept the suffering in our life for our ultimate salvation.  It is through our daily mortification that we strengthen our souls and open the path into Heaven.  You will always find some level of suffering in your life; there will be some burden that you can offer up to the Lord.  In recognizing Christ in everything, even in suffering, you begin to recognize and accept the crosses in your life. God wants us to learn to suffer tribulation without comfort so that we can learn to put all our trust in Him.  How can we enjoin Christ unless we enjoin Him on that glorious cross?  We are called to “lift high the cross” in our daily lives.  When we encounter the cross, we encounter ourselves.  If you carry the cross willingly, it will carry you and bring you to that narrow gate where Christ will lower you from its great burden and comfort you in His arms.  No cross, no Christ.  No Christ, no heaven.  Like Christ, we must “suffer these thing and so enter into [our] glory” (Luke 24:26).  If you truly desire to be with Him and to be one of His closest friends so you can share in what He has, you must drink from the same cup that he drank from.  Not only does He ask us to come follow him, but he also asks if you can drink from His cup.  It is not just listening to Him, but we must put into action his words including the cross. We must not run away from suffering, but run to it.  Do you seek pain medication to dull your senses or do you work through the pain to see the other side? If you love God with all your heart, all your soul and all your mind, then you will love Him through all the pain. “Oh that you are worthy to suffer something for the Name of Jesus!” We must realize that “It is necessary for us to undergo many hardships before we enter the kingdom of God” (Acts 14:22).  May our Lord Jesus Christ bring us there in all His glory!

A Simple Pray

Lord, you died on the cross for me.

Let me burden that same cross in all its glory and wonder

So that I may experience the hardships that take me into the kingdom of Heaven. 

Yours in Christ

Michael Marcon

 

Easter Meditation

My Dearest Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

Book 2 Chapter 11: On the Small Number of Lovers of the Cross

“Jesus has many lovers of His heavenly kingdom, but few cross-bearers.”

It seems a little strange to be talking about the cross now that we are in the season of the resurrection.  However, it is important to never forget the power of the cross; because without the cross, we do not get to the resurrection.  Unfortunately, most of us would like to forget the cross and go straight to the resurrection. If you listen to the message from many of the prosperity preachers, it’s all about the reward and the sacrifice.  These are false prophets who easily turn us away from God for the earthly treasurers.  Unfortunately, we must live with the cross; we must share in his tribulation.  “Many will follow him to the breaking of the bread, but few will drink the bitter cup of His Passion.”  Today’s message is all about being “poor in spirit.” To see if you are poor in spirit, look back on your most recent Lent.  What did you do to prepare for this Easter Season?  Did you honor the fast days?  What did you give up for Lent? Did you increase your prayer life?  What did you do for your fellow many?  And most importantly, why did you do these things? In your reflection, the reality of your sacrifice should become clear.  We all love Jesus when our life is good and praise Him when we feel He has done us great favor (i.e., prosperity preaching); but what do we do when our life is in turmoil or we feel He has abandoned us (i.e., reality)? Do you complain or do you praise Him?  We must learn to be lovers of the cross.  We must learn to find Joy both in the bitter cup of His crucifixion and in the glory of His resurrection.  The celebration of Easter is a foretaste of what heaven will be like if we bear the cross during this life.  After our life on earth, the joy of heaven awaits for those who truly love Christ through the entirety of our Lent.  Our entire life here on earth is a Lent when compared to the heaven that awaits us.  But heaven is only available for those who see the joy in Lent and the happiness that we gain through suffering and bearing the cross.  When we desire a life filed with earthly pleasures, we are filled with “self-interest and self-love.”  We must learn to give up all our earthly treasures and realize that anything we have belongs to God.  If you tithe to the church, is this all you think that God deserves? If you gave everything you owned to the church, you will not have given enough.  God owns 100 percent of everything you have, because without God, you have nothing.  Therefore, you own nothing but what is in your soul. What is in your soul, will decide where you spend eternity.  Everything you do must be for the love of God.  Thomas a Kempis says, “And then when we have done all things that we know we ought to do, let us think that we have done nothing.” We must always remain in service for the Lord.  We must always be willing to carry the cross with joyful enthusiasm.

A Simple Prayer

Father in heaven who I love above all things;

Help me to see your will so I can do all you order me to do.

It is only when I completely surrender to your will that I will be poor in spirit.

It is then when I can say that “I am alone and afflicted” (Psalms 25:16)

Yours in Christ

Michael Marcon

Lenten Meditation

My Dearest Brothers and Sisters in Christ

Book 2 Chapter 9: On the Want of All Comfort

“It is not hard to despise human comfort when the comfort of God is present.”

What is it we want but to be forever in the arms of God.  St. Augustine said, “Our heart is restless until it rests in you Lord.”  But what about those times when we do not feel the presence of God?  What about those periods of dryness when it seems like God has abandoned us?  Do we still find comfort in God?  Thomas a Kempis says, “”It is not test of virtue if you are happy and devout when grace comes to soul.”  None of us seek tribulation in our lives, but sometimes it is there.  It is there to help develop us fully so we can learn to fully depend upon the grace of our Father in heaven.  This is most true when we lose a loved one or someone very dear to us. We cry out in pain because they are no longer around.  We feel abandoned. This is also true when a dear friend betrays us or lets us down when we need them the most.  God allows us to experience these times so we can learn to rely solely upon Him who created us.  We should go through these trials knowing that God loves us and not feeling depressed because we think He abandoned us.  Before we can win victory over our own self-love, we must “go through considerable conflict with self and be able to give [our] whole heart to God.”  If we rely upon our own strength, we will become dependent upon human consolation. But those who truly love Christ and seek a virtuous life, will always seek consolation in God.  When God sends you “spiritual comfort” we should rejoice and glad for this is the day the Lord has made. But when consolation is withdrawn, we should “not become despondent.” We should “patiently wait for the return of God” for He will reward us “grace in fuller measure.”  This is when we will truly appreciate the grace that has been poured out for us.  It is in this time we will find the greatest comfort.  After going through the dryness, the reward on the other side is much more cherished.  Many times when you read the stories of the great Saints, you hear of times in their lives when God did not interact with them.  If the great Saints go through these periods, then we should want the same for us.  I think if you talk to anyone who is devout, you will tell you that they too have experienced these periods of dryness.  It is during these periods of temptation that we must truly love God to choose God not knowing for sure He is there. This is the true trial of faith. 

A Simple Prayer

Heaven Father, Creator of All

You love is endless and your grace abundant;

Let always pour out on me so I can feel your presence in my life.

But when I do not sense you in my life, at least give me the grace to know that you will return.

Yours in Christ

Michael Marcon

 

Lenten Meditation

My Dearest Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

Book 2 Chapter 8: On Familiar Friendship of Jesus

“Those who find Jesus find the pearl of great price – indeed, the highest good; but those who lose Him lose all.”

When we put God first in our life, we find that great joy which puts us at peace, even when we have to face adversity.  If we do not have Jesus in our life, our life is “dry and hard.”  There is no hope and the joy that find is short lived and fleeting.  It is useless for you to desire anything besides Jesus, because that desire places the world above Christ and becomes the focus of our love.  “To be without Jesus is the torment of hell, but to be with Him is the joy of paradise.”  With Jesus is in your camp, you cannot be defeated.  He is the only one who can give you the strength to defeat Satan and withstand the suffering we face in this world.  Thomas a Kempis says, “It is a great art to know how to talk with Jesus, and to know how to keep Him with you is great wisdom.”  Some people just feel at ease when they pray and find no difficulty talking with God.  This comes through practice and patient and understanding.  Start simple with your conversation.  According to St. Theresa of Avila, communication with God should always start after we read or meditate on His great works.  She suggests using the Gospels as your source of aspiration.  In this method, it is God who initiates the conversation.  It is also in reading the Gospels that you will find that pearl of great price.  This centers us on Christ and makes us one with Him.  Our love will then begin to flow toward him who is love and the source of all love.  The love we find for God through this type of prayer becomes the source of love we will show for our friends and foes alike.  When we love our neighbors like God loves us, we have truly found our friendship in Christ.

A Simple Prayer

Lord God,

            It is you who I love most; help me center you in my life

            Help me find your love in my heart so I ca experience that great and wondrous joy.

Yours in Christ

Michael Marcon 

 

Lenten Meditation

My Dearest Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

Book 2 Chapter 7: On the Love of Jesus above All Things

“How blessed are those who know how good it is to love Jesus.”

We are called to love Jesus above all things and to despise ourselves for His sake.  After attending Holy Thursday Mass last night, I begin to have a deeper understanding of what it means to despise oneself.  This means in its simplest form – putting oneself last.  When Jesus washed the feet of the Apostles, He moved himself to the lowest position within human society.  This is the part of the body no Jew would have ever touched.  So why did he pick the feet?  Because this is the part of our body which is constantly in communication with this world. When we walk in this world, the dirt of this world collect on our feet.  We must wash away the things of this world if we want to rest in the arms of our heavenly Father. By washing the dirt from our feet, we remove our connection to this world freeing us to walk with Christ.  We wash away the false love for the creatures and earthly things that fail us for the love of our Father which is eternally enduring.  We are called to remain close to Jesus both “in life and in death” by committing to Him alone.  When all others leave you, Christ will still be there by your side.  It is amazing that we can turn our backs on Him who created us out of His love and when our earthly treasures fail us and we find no one to love us, He is still there with open arms.  We can deny Him three times as Peter did today on Good Friday and even after His crucifixion, He still greets us with love and compassion.  If only you could empty yourself of the earthly treasures, how greater would His love feel to us.  The more we empty ourselves of the earthly things, the more room we make for Christ in our lives.  “All flesh is grass, and all its glory shall fade like the flowers of the field (Isaiah 40:6).  Thomas a Kempis says, “To seek yourself is to find yourself – but to your own destruction.” But if we seek Christ in all things, “you will most certainly find Him”.

A Simple Prayer

Lord,

On this Good Friday, help me to seek you and your cross.

Help me to find all my treasures in you and in your suffering today

So I can be freed from eternal death in your resurrection.

 

Yours in Christ

Michael Marcon

PS – Today is Good Friday. Today is the day that Peter denied Christ.  All His friends abandoned Him and left Him at the cross.  How many times do we feel the same way that in our time of greatest suffering, there is no one there for us?  This is the message for today – Christ never abandons us, even when we abandon Him on the cross.  Every time we sin, we turn away from Him who suffered for us.  Every time we chose not to sin we bring ourselves to very foot of that Cross to enjoin Him in his suffering.  Because when you choose not to sin, you are saying, “Yes, Lord, I love you more than this world.”

 

Lenten Meditation

My Dearest Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

Book 2 Chapter 6: On the Joy of Good Conscience

“Have a good conscience and you will always be happy.”

Today, we hear some of the best advice yet, “To be happy, we need a good conscience.”  So what is a good conscience?  Some sat that your conscience is that nagging voice in the back of your mind trying to convince you to do good. The Catechism of the Catholic Church says that the conscience is that “interior voice … within whose heart the inner law of God is inscribed.”  It is that voice that when you pick good over evil becomes quiet and gives you peace.  But when you are struggling with good and evil, it is that voice shouting at you at the top of its lungs trying to lead you “the good”.  We are only really happy when we have done well and selected good.  Evil people may appear happy but in reality they are never really happy because they have lots of conflict and turmoil in their lives.  They are never satisfied and the soul is restless.  “There is no peace for the wicked, says the Lord.” (Isaiah 48:22)  However, “those who love God will glorify in tribulation.”  This is because they can find joy and comfort in knowing that Christ, through his suffering on the cross, has already burdened their load. While we may experience some joy and happiness in doing evil things, this glory is short lived and generally followed by sadness.  Those who truly seek everlasting happiness avoid making bad choices and seek the good in all.  A person whose conscience is clear will have peace and contentment in their lives.  These people do not seek praise from others or get upset when someone blames them.  Thomas a Kempis says, “You are no better for being praised, nor worse for being blamed, for you are what you are, nor will you be more nor less than God sees you to be.”  He is telling us that the opinions of others do not matter; it is only what God thinks of us that counts.  “We see only the face, but God sees into the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7).  All we can see is the actions of others, but God knows our intentions.  You are always called to “do the best you can and to make little of yourself” because these are the traits of a humble person.  It is in our humility that we fight off the gravest of all sins – Pride.  It is in our humility that we will bow to the desires of God.  St. Paul tells us “For it is not the one who commands himself who is really approved, but the one whom the Lord commands” (2 Corinthians 10:18).  To have a truly interior life, we must live “intimately with God” and not be “bound by any outward attachment.” We can only find rest in God.  St Augustine tells us that we will not find rest until we rest in the arms of our Lord.

A Simple Prayer

 

Father in heaven:

You gave me a conscience so I could chose you and not evil.

Help me to strengthen my conscience so I can make good choices.

Give me the wisdom and to no when something is wrong and

The fortitude to always choose good so that I may rest in your arms.

 

Yours in Christ

Michael Marcon

 

PS – Today is Holy Thursday.  This is the beginning of the Triduum; the holiest three days in the Church Calendar.  Take time to enjoin the church during this period of the Passion of Christ.  It is through the Passion of Christ that the gates of heaven were reopened for us in spite of our sinfulness.  These are the same gates which are found through an interior life.

 

Lenten Meditation

My Dearest Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

Book 2 Chapter 5 On Knowing Yourself:

“Often we are unaware of our own interior blindness”

Do we really know ourselves or are we blinded by our own sinfulness?  We must understand that we cannot trust our sacredness because many times we lack the grace that we need and through our own neglect we tend to lose the little grace that we have.  How often do we sin and then turn around and justify our sin?  We let our passions rule us and “we mistake it for zeal.”  Jesus says that we are quick to see the speck in our neighbor’s eye, but miss the log in ours (Matthew 7:3-5).  We become critical of the little things that our neighbors do.  We let these little things annoy us, but never consider how we annoy our neighbor. If we truly saw ourselves through the eyes of others, we “would not find cause to judge others severely”.  We cannot become a true follower of Christ unless you learn to avoid the affairs of others.  Thomas a Kempis tells us, “If, therefore, you wish to have peace in your soul and to be united with God, set aside all else and focus the eye of your soul on your own deeds.”  To become truly interiorly focused we must keep ourselves free from anxieties that are exterior to us.  We must learn to trust in God and to let go of the exterior because it is only the interior that will get you into heaven.  We are called to love God and to direct our soul to God for the love of God alone.  We are to despise all else for it will only lead us away from Him who gave everything to save us from our sins.  It is only through God that all our needs are fulfilled and are desires are truly satisfied.  It is only in God that we are fully satisfied. And we will find “true joy of our heart.”

A Simple Prayer

 

Lord, free my eyes to look interiorly

So I am not concerned with the defects of others

But with correcting the kinks in my own soul.

Give me the grace to love you and to direct my soul toward you

Who will satisfy all my needs and fulfill my life.

 

Yours in Christ

Michael Marcon

 

Lenten Meditation

My Dearest Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

Book 2 Chapter 4: On Purity of Min and a Simple Intention:

“Simplicity looks to God and purity finds Him and savors Him.”

We are called to lead a simple and pure life simply because God is simple and pure.  We are called to imitate that which is purest of all- our Lord Jesus Christ.  Thomas a Kempis says, “We are lifted up above earthly things on two wings: simplicity and purity.” If we simplify our life, our affections are directed toward only a few things.  If our affections are geared only toward God, how simple is our life.  This allows us to aim all our love and affection toward Him who is pure love.  Jesus Crist gave us two simple commandments; “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind; and, Love your neighbor as yourself.” (Luke 10:27) To live out this commandment is the heavenly intention.  If your heart is pure, “you would see all things clearly and understand them well.”  As we begin to focus on our interior life, so will we begin to judge the world. If we find interior peace and simplicity, we will find the joy of an encounter with Christ. If our life is simple and pure, then we will judge our neighbor with compassion and love.  If we look to the world for the meaning of life, we will judge our neighbor harshly based on the rules of the world.  We will allow gossip and material things to complicate our lives and dictate our thoughts.  Our desires become impure and our heart will become afflicted with hatred.  If you are to experience true joy, you must simplify your life.  If your heart is filled with desire for worldly things, then your conscience is stimulated by evil desires.  As soon as your love for God and Neighbor becomes “lukewarm”, life becomes a “big effort and you willingly receive distractions from without”.  To conquer this slothfulness for God, you must learn to stand firm with God and fight off the complicated desires of the world.  When you stand with God, the “effort expended seems little which before you thought was insurmountable.”  It is in our simplicity and purity that we find joy and rest in the arms of God Himself.

A Simple Prayer

 

Lord, help me to simplify my life.

Help me trade in my earthly desires for love of You and love of neighbor.

Help me develop an interior life which leads me to purity of heart.

 

Yours in Christ

Michael Marcon

Lenten Meditation

My Dearest Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

Book 2 Chapter 3: The Peaceful Person

You must first have peace within your own soul before you can make peace between other people.

If we want to peace in the world, we must learn to be peaceful ourselves.  Anger and frustration with others will only lead to further anger and frustration.  We must learn to center ourselves on a peaceful mission which starts with establishing a calm disposition within ourselves.  Those who are passionate about a topic are not necessarily peaceful.  They allow their own frustration turn into anger and hatred.  This hatred easily becomes evil accomplishing just the opposite from which we intended  Protesters who sit in peaceful prayer in front of an abortion clinic are more likely to change the heart of someone contemplating an abortion then someone yelling at them. Both want to end abortion, but the zeal of the passionate angry protestor creates conflict not peace.  These discontented angry people are “easily troubled” and that spills over into their relationship with others.  While those that are peaceful instill comfort and calmness to their fellow companions.  A peaceful person is more likely to forgive their neighbor and make amends for their sins then to create conflict.  Our mission is to be charitable to others and lead them to Christ.  In our charity, we must convey love and compassion as Jesus Christ conveyed to the sinners that He confronted during his mission.  We must examine our own actions to see how far we are from charity and humility.  We must remember that life on this world is a test.  It is easy to be in a good relationship with an easy-going person, but a real test of our virtue is to be at peace with a person who creates conflict.  It is in your peacefulness that you will instill calmness in their heart.  It is through your kind and gentle attitude that you will convert their heart.  Thomas a Kempis states, “In this mortal life, our peace consists in the humble bearing of suffering and contradictions, not in being free of them, for we cannot live in this world without adversity.”  It is how we handle adversity that truly centers us on the trail to heaven.  Those who can tolerate the adversity “will enjoy the most peace, for such persons are masters of themselves … and heaven as their reward.”

A Simple Prayer

 

Father in Heaven, help me seek peace in my life.

Help me to be a warrior against adversity through my own calm disposition.

Teach me to be at rest with myself so I can be an example of peace for others.

 

Yours in Christ

Michael Marcon

 

Lenten Meditation

My Dearest Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

Book 2 Chapter 2: On Humble Submission

“Do not be concerned about who is on your side or who is against you; just be sure that God is with you.”

We are called to submit our lives completely to God.  So what is a humble submission?  This is realizing that you cannot do anything without God our Father.  You cannot even take a breath unless God wills it.  One of the virtues that is developed out of submission is patience.  It is a lack of patience that causes us to lose our trust in God and fall away from Him.  Thomas a Kempis tells us to “be silent and endure for a while and you will experience the help of God.”  We must learn to work on God’s time and not our own.  Our lack of patience causes us to lose confidence in the only one who will stand by us always.  We must learn to give everything to God; we must learn to put all our woes in His hands.  But most importantly, we must trust that He will come to our aide, even if it takes longer than we like or not in the way we want.  We are called to humble ourselves. God never refuses the humble and contrite.  Humble people are always at peace with themselves and find comfort even when they are condemned by others.  But be careful of false humility which is born out of pride.  To declare publically that you are a humble servant of God is prideful.  It is by your actions, not by your words, that you are humble. If we are sad that people do not acknowledge our humility, we are being consumed by pride.  Pride is the same sin that caused Lucifer to fall from heaven and caused Adam and Eve to fall from grace.  “If you wish to reach the height of perfection, never think of yourself as being virtuous until you know sincerely in your heart that you are least of all.”  It is when you realize that you are least and are happy, you have found favor in God.

A Simple Prayer

My Dearest Father in Heaven, give me the strength to submit my life to you.

Allow me to take great joy when I am least among men.

It is in this position, that I am truly humble.

 

Yours in Christ

Michael Marcon

 

Lenten Meditation

My Dearest Brothers and Sisters in Christ

Book 2 Chapter 1: On Interior Conversion

“The only way your soul will find rest is to turn to God with your whole heart and abandon the wretched world.”

Our ultimate goal is to find the kingdom of God because in the kingdom of God is the only place where we can find peace and joy.  If this is what we seek, then where do we find it?  The kingdom of God resides within us. It is part of our interior. While we see hints of it in the external world, we must look interiorly if we want to find it.  If we look for it in this world and seek to find our happiness in this world, then in this world we will die.  We are to “make room for him in our heart and shut out all others.”  If you have Christ in your heart, you are truly rich in the things that matter most. These are the riches that bring joy and happiness, even in our suffering.  With Him in our heart, He will provide for all our needs and defend you against the powers of hell.  He is the only person who provides everything we need.  We must not put our trust in others, but in God alone.  Your fellow man will be for you one day and deny you the next as Christ was denied during his Passion.  If we put all our trust in God, he will He will never let you down.  Therefore, God should be the center of your love.  Thomas a Kempis asks the question, “Why do you look for rest on this earth when it is not your true home?”  Your home is heaven.  You are a traveler on a journey.  Like a traveler, you will see the sites and the monuments along the way. These sites and monuments are here to help direct us to God.  Therefore, you should take time to seek out the monuments which bring you closer to God.  This may be his magnificent churches, the glorious mountains, the beautiful art work or his glorious flowers.  We should seek to find evidence of God and His miracles every day in World.  In seeking out God, we fill our soul with His love.  By filling our soul with His love, we begin to meditate on Him who will save us.  At the same time, we should contemplate on His life and His mission including His Passion.  As we approach Easter, our minds should be focused on His rejection and the wounds that He suffered for us.  From his wounds pour out His blood; the blood that frees us from our own suffering  and pain. In focusing on His Passion, our own suffering will begin to make sense.  It is when we enjoin with His suffering, that we prepare ourselves for entrance in the kingdom of God.

A Simple Prayer

 

Oh my Lord,

You came into this world to open the gates of heaven,

You suffered for my sins and made it possible for me to enter through the narrow gate.

May I always make room for you within my heart

So I can experience a taste of the joy of heaven.

 

Yours in Christ

Michael Marcon

 

Lenten Meditation

My Dearest Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

Book 2 Considerations for Leading an Interior Life

“No one who follows Me will ever walk in darkness.” (John 8:12)

Well, we have completed the first of the books from the Imitation of Christ. The first book starts with the above passage from St. John. Man is always happiest when he is in the light.  When the sun rises in the morning, it fills the earth with warmth and wipes out the darkness. This first book was like the sun rising on the earth; it help us separate ourselves from the darkness. The first book considered useful advice that would help us lead a spiritual life.  Most of the chapters focused on things we should do to become closer to God; things like being prudent, reading scripture, avoiding pride, and resisting temptation.  The focus of this first book was to get you focused on Christ so that He is the center of your life.  The last few sections of this book were preparing us for the next book in the Imitation of Christ - Considerations for Leading an Interior Life.  So what is an interior life? An interior life is a life which seeks God in everything, a life of prayer and the practice of living in the presence of God always. It advocates intimate, friendly conversation with Him, and a determined focus on internal prayer versus our external actions. It is a life which focuses on meditation to help us become closer to Christ. Saint John Paul the Great tells us that Jesus' statement "without me you can do nothing" (John 15:5) is a truth that "constantly reminds us of the primacy of Christ and, in union with him, the primacy of the interior life and of holiness." Pope Benedict XVI in his encyclical Deus Caritas Est, states that man "cannot always give, he must also receive." It is in our receiving from God, we experience that “God is Love”. Thomas a Kempis writes:

"The kingdom of God is within you," says the Lord. Turn, then, to God with all your heart. Forsake this wretched world and your soul shall find rest. Learn to despise external things, to devote yourself to those that are within, and you will see the kingdom of God come unto you, that kingdom which is peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, gifts not given to the impious. Christ will come to you offering His consolation, if you prepare a fit dwelling for Him in your heart, whose beauty and glory, wherein He takes delight, are all from within. His visits with the inward man are frequent, His communion sweet and full of consolation, His peace great, and His intimacy wonderful indeed. Therefore, faithful soul, prepare your heart for this Bridegroom that He may come and dwell within you; He Himself says: "If any one love Me, he will keep My word, and My Father will love him, and We will come to him, and will make Our abode with him."

The first Book focused on us turning to Christ, this book focuses on the rewards that we will be given by maintaining a clear focus on Him who created all and is the only source of true happiness and joy. We will spend the next two weeks going through this second book.

A Simple Prayer

God, I seek you every day.  I have turned my eyes toward you. Fill my heart and my soul with your grace that I might be filled with your love.

Yours In Christ

Michael Marcon

 

Lenten Meditation

My Dearest Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

Book 1 Chapter 25: On the Fervent Amendment of Our Whole Life

“Be alert and diligent in the service of God, thinking often why you were born and why you have left the world.”

We are called to be passionate for God.  In our passion, we must focus all our efforts on “striving to be perfect.” It is in seeking perfection that our labors will be rewarded and we will find the kingdom of heaven.  It is in this final state that we will never experience sorrow dread ever again.  If you strive to do good, there should be no doubt that God will reward you for your sacrifice.  “Put your trust on the Lord and do good, that you may dwell in the land and be secure.” (Psalm 37:3) The lyrics from a song say, “Everyone wants to go to heaven, but nobody wants to die.” What is it that we must die to, to get into heaven?  Clearly we must die to things in of this world.  We must be willing to give up everything for the love of God.  Thomas a Kempis tells us that it is not enough to have good habits, but we must have a strong passion for God.  Without this passion for God, we are easily attached and our faith is week.  In finding our passion, we must learn to seek virtue to handle those things which keep us from the Kingdom.  We should use every waking moment for spiritual gain.  When we see good, we should desire to imitate it, but when we see bad, we should avoid the situation to avoid falling into the trap which has been set for us.  Today we should ask ourselves, is our life ordered toward God or are we disordered?  How inspiration it is to see devout persons who have a deep passion for serving God, so courteous and self-disciplined!  Are you devoted enough to sacrifice everything, or are you “neglectful and lukewarm?” If you are not diligent in our seeking, you will anguish in your life.  If you are undisciplined in your focus on God, then you always be in trouble.  In your weakness, your soul will be easily violated.  You will find that in your weakness, you will easily fall into depravity. “What a beautiful life it would be if we had nothing else to do but lift our hearts and voices to praise our Lord!”  We were created to love and praise God. Therefore, we will be happiest and find the greatest amount of joy when we fulfill our purpose.

A Simple Prayer

 

Oh God, how I love you.

Give me the strength I need to praise you always.

 

Yours in Christ

Michael Marcon

 

Lenten Meditation

My Dearest Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

Book 1 Chapter 24: On the Last Judgment and the Punishment for Sins

“He will judge all things rightly and truly.”

There are only a few things that we know about life after death.  One is that we will be judged and punished for sins. Especially those sins which we have kept in our heart and have not loosed from our soul.  During your judgment, you will stand before God, fully naked and exposed.  All your shame will be exposed in that moment of judgment.  You will not be able to hide anything from Him who knows all.  What is beautiful about our faith is that we can make amends today through reconcilation.  Thomas a Kempis asks the question, “Why do you not provide for that Day of Judgment now.”  We can actually work off some of our time in purgatory here on earth through suffering and works of corporal mercy.  So how do we do that?  First, by enduring the wrong of another, we need to be more concerned about the sin that was committed then the injury done to us.  We need to be willing to honestly pray for our enemy and from our heart forgive them who offend us.  We must being willing to ask for forgiveness and say “I have wronged you.”  We must be more compassionate than angry.  To do so, we must learn to set aside anger for love of neighbor.  And lastly, we must learn to resist sin when we are faced with temptation. It is critical that you work on getting rid of bad habitats now instead of waiting until that day of judgment.  You must learn self-denial and defeat self-love.  It is in our pride, that we do not repent and make amends for our sins.  We are called to be truly sorry for our sins and realizing that the sins that we commit truly offend our Father in heaven.  They offend Him, because they injure us and our neighbor.  More importantly, our sins separate us from Him who created us.  If we are truly sorry for our sins, we will stand in the company of blessed on that final day.  Those that have suffered for their sins in this world will be joyful in the next.  The irreligious will be pricked and tormented by the fires of hell.  If we are truly reconciled with our Father, we will stand in bright new garments as white as the purest light. All the sacrifices we made in this world will be given back to us in great happiness in the next.  Endure the pain of repentance now because the suffering we face hear will be much less than that we face as part of our judgment.  “Those who set aside the fear God will not preserve long in the state of grace, but will soon fall into the snares of the devil.” During this Lenten season, find time to go to Confession.  More important, take the time to mediate and really flush out your sinfulness.  In that mediation, ask yourself, “What drives me, God’s will or mine?”

A Simple Prayer

My God, I am sorry for my sins with all my heart. In choosing to do wrong and failing to do good, I have sinned against you whom I should love above all things. I firmly intend, with your help, to do penance, to sin no more, and to avoid whatever leads me to sin. Our Savior Jesus Christ suffered and died for us. In His name, my God, have mercy.

Yours in Christ

Michael Marcon

 

Lenten Meditation

My Dearest Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

Book 1 Chapter 23: Meditation on Death

“How dull we are and hard of heart, for we think only of the present and make little provision for the life hereafter!”

You knew eventually we would have to tackle the aspect of death; especially during Lent.  But why meditate on death?  Because death is nothing but a stepping stone between this world and our eternal life.  How we live this life will determine where we live our eternal life.  We must realize that the hour of death will soon be upon us.  Because of that realization, many of us fear death.  We fear death not because of the unknown but because we are not prepared and well centered on Christ.  I think this is why we want to ignore death and pretend that it will not come.  The younger we are, the less we want to think about the phase in our life.  But death is inevitable.  It is something we all will face.  We are on this earth to advance our life spiritually so we can prepare ourselves for our eternal union with God.  Unfortunately, many of us get caught up in the material aspects of this world with little consideration for our spiritual wellbeing.  Thomas a Kempis says, “In the morning think that you may not live till night: and when night comes, do not be sure that you will live till tomorrow.”  This helps us focus on our mortality and prepares us for our day of judgment. We must realize that “the Son of Man will come at an hour when you least expect Him” (Luke 12:40).  If we are not prepared to die, then our life was not put in order.  “How happy and wise who try now to become what they want to be at the hour of death.”  So what is it that we need to do to prepare for death?  Thomas tells us that we should have “a perfect contempt of the world, an ardent desire to progress in virtue, a love of discipline, a prompt obedience, a denial of self and a patient bearing of all adversities.” In other words, we must deny the things of this world because they are obstacles that prevent us from getting into the Kingdom of Heaven.  It is in these things that one develops a love for Christ that “will give you great confidence in dying happily.”  We must realize that time is precious and today is the day of our salvation.  Today is the day we must decide to walk upright in the presence of the Lord.  Today is the day we must chose life or death.  Thomas leaves this section with the following advice – “Live on earth as a pilgrim and a stranger, unconcerned with the world’s business. Let your heart remain free and lifted up to God, for you have not here a lasting city. Preserve in prayer, sending your aspirations daily up to God, so that at the hour of death your soul may depart from this world and go to its Lord.”

A Simple Prayer

Father of life and death;

I know not the hour or the place, but I know your angel is on his way.

Help me to prepare myself, give me the strength I need to choose you over the world.

Help me to prepare for a happy and joyful death.

 

Yours in Christ

Michael Marcon

 

Lenten Meditation

My Dearest Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

 

Book 1 Chapter 22: On the Consideration of Human Misery

 

“You are wretched wherever you are and no matter which way you turn – unless your turning is to God.”

 

Today we are asked the question is misery good or bad? “Who is there that gets their own way all the time?”  Everyone in the world has troubles and faces trials.  None of us are free from pain and suffering.  It does not matter how rich or poor you are, whether you’re a good person or not, a king or the pope, you will have troubles in your life.  We become spiritually weak when we look at other people and think that their life is so much easier because they lead a “nice life”.  In our envy we become jealous and desire things that are not good for us.  Suffering is not bad for us since it unites us with Christ’s suffering on the cross.  It allows us to understand just how weak we are and that we need to rely upon the strength and mercy of our Father in heaven.  Our happiness should not be based on our worldly possessions but on our spiritual possessions.  Our spiritual possessions are possessions that are only visible to God. Thomas a Kempis states that “the more spiritual we become, the more painful it is, for we better understand the defects of human corruption.”  You must be careful not to become consumed by a love for this “miserable and corruptible life” because in your love for this world, you “would never want to leave it for the kingdom of God.”  It is so easy to be lured away from your spirituality by the pleasures of the flesh because “when death comes, then [you] will realize how utterly worthless were the things [you] loved so much.” If you look to the Saints and Christ’s faithful followers as our model for life, you will that they gave up the worldly desires and “set their sights and placed all their hopes on eternal joys.”  It was through the fear of loving the material things that they might be drawn downward into the fires of hell.  During Lent, you need to get up and make these great changes in your life.  We must realize that we live in a fallen world and sin abounds all around us.  We must learn to wait in patience, “having confidence in the mercy of God.” We must learn to be diligent because the virtue we gained by God’s grace can be lost through our own carelessness.

 

A Simple Prayer

 

Father in Heaven, Creator of All;  

Have mercy on my soul.

Help me to accept my suffering and live through my misery

So I can enjoy the Kingdom of Heaven.

 

Yours in Christ

Michael Marcon