After Mass agreed to coffee with a person who is flustered with sales work. Discussed the matter, and reminded that Christ is in the sales work. He knows all about sales. Later in an e-mail from "Adel", said cannot use computer much because might take away from time with the Lord. Responded that Christ is in the computer writing, for He is in our interactions as we are in the Body of Christ. He is the Head. He figures things out for us. We must pray for and focus awareness that we are in Christ in the present moments, no matter if sales work frustrations or e-mails. We remain in Him.
My spiritual director yesterday reminded me of the oft-repeated words of Jesus in the Gospel of St. John. Remain in My love. Jesus repeats it in images such as I am the vine; you are the branches. He is explicit that if we are in Him, we will be in the Father, for the Father and He are one. Perhaps our personal challenge is to have the faith to believe it.
Another point the spiritual director made is to tell Jesus that I'd like a little more human interaction if it is His will, while continuing the mission He wills. Novel idea, to me. I had not thought about mentioning this desire to Jesus. As soon as the director suggested it, the prayer was made, right in that present moment of connection between his speaking and my listening. Present moment spark prayer.
Then he said something that I'm to do during Mass. This seems pertinent to all in the Body of Christ. He told me that Jesus is knocking on my heart wanting me to unite with Him. He wants to shower me with His love, for He loves me so much, even infinitely. Jesus wants union with me. We each can embrace and enact these words. They are for every soul. During Mass I had been cramming every intention as prayer for others into the situation in each Mass. I thought I should utilize the graced Mass encounter interceding for others.
No, he said. During Mass be receptive to Jesus' love. Remain in His love. Let Jesus later on decide how He wants me to pray and do for other people. So I tried it this morning during Mass. I prayed to be receptive to Jesus' love for me, and for Him to take me into Himself. Once Mass and the graces began, I tried obediently to not let the prayer intentions for others waft in. Just receive His love, remain in His love. Soon into Mass, I understood that I am in His love, but it was not possible to be just me in His love.
Rather, it was clear that all of us are in His love. Everyone in the Body of Christ, be receptive to His love and remain in Him. I will report this to the spiritual director. It seems an impossibility for one to remain in Christ's love and at the same time not be connected with all the souls in the Body of Christ. So if one is receiving all His love, by the one connected with all, then all are receiving His love.
I prayed this morning at Mass to receive all His love, to remain in His love. The experience is profound. All members of His Body touch me, as I touch them, whether or not aware of being touched, as I remain in His love. We connect one to another, created to receive all His love for us as He infinitely loves each soul of His Body.
Remaining in Christ's love during Mass is transcendent. He knows already our prayer intentions. He wants His Mass for love, for Him to shower His love upon us. We must each be receptive to His love. But if others do not know to remain in His love, by our being in His Body, other members are lovingly, mystically touched. We must remain in His love.
Jesus has reasons for the way our life experiences unfold in every present moment, for we are in Him in the moments. When we forget this reality or when we distract from the awareness of being in Him, of remaining in His love, our souls' present moments in life unfold without spiritual savor.
We don't have to consciously know, such as salesperson in the midst of a demonstrating a product to a customer, but if we grasp and agree to remain in His love, in faith we are being loved by Christ in each present moment. We can seal the deal, and the actualization of remaining in His love grows. Could this possibly be a step on the Stairway to Heaven?
When we are climbing steps are we much aware that we are climbing? Do we attentively consider each step in itself or the movements of our bodies? We may be generally aware of the climbing movement, but we more have specific awareness of our purpose for the climb.
We learn to ascend and descend to ascend again, repeatedly in our lives. Minor turning points culminate in major turning points, the culmination of a gathering of turning points. The major one experienced as a culminating emphasis is that I am to continue on this prayerfully, purposeful project. The director thinks this is a marvelous good to write, and he exuberantly encouraged the effort.
Why did I expect Jesus to turn that moment another direction? Don't know why, and it doesn't matter why something is decided one way and not another. An important point: What Jesus decides in our present moments is what He decides, and we don't need to know why or why not unless He decides we need to know.
"‘I am the living bread which came down from heaven; if any one eats of this bread, he will live for ever; and the bread which I shall give for the life of the world is my flesh.’ The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, ‘How can this man give us his flesh to eat?’" (John 6:51–52).
ReplyDeleteHis listeners were stupefied because now they understood Jesus literally — and correctly. He again repeated his words, but with even greater emphasis, and introduced the statement about drinking his blood:
"Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you have no life in you; he who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.
For my flesh is food indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in mim" (John 6: 53-56)