“Saints are always called to grow and never to stand still” (inner word)
On our path of discipleship and in our Father’s arms, we can ease the taut bow a little—without, however, setting it aside or losing sight of it. This does no harm; rather, it removes unnecessary hardness from us. For as children of our Father, we know well that God adjusts every cross to our abilities and gives all the grace needed to bear it.
This is something different from “standing still.” Standing still here means, in a certain sense, giving up—becoming bound to oneself and no longer moving toward God. That, however, will not please our Father. After all, we are on the way to Him and still have a distance to cover. Every stage teaches us, and we can grow in every situation, especially in love.
That is what makes our lives vibrant. In love, we can never say, “Now we love enough!” It would surely bring a pitying smile to the face of the Apostle Paul and a slight shake of the head.
Then he would say: “Oh no! Listen: ‘Love is patient and kind; love is not jealous or boastful; it is not arrogant or rude. Love does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrong, but rejoices in the right. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.’ (1 Cor 13, 4-7) Do you love like this yet?”
We would probably answer timidly: “We still have a long way to go.”
“You see,” he would reply, “keep going—never stop!”
For: “Love never fails.”