“God does not become greater when you adore Him. But you become greater and happier when you serve Him” (St. Augustine).
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Inner healing in God – Part VII
Asceticism: Sentinel of Freedom
As we gradually approach the end of the topic we have been developing over the last few days, I realize there are many other aspects of what God offers us for the healing and strengthening of our souls that we have not discussed.
In this series, I wanted to show that we Catholics have an authentic path through which our souls, wounded by original and personal sin, can be restored by God. If we walk this path with perseverance, our souls will heal more and more, and the Spirit of God will be able to permeate our beings.
LOVE FOR THE BRIDE OF THE LAMB
“After loving our Lord, I recommend loving his bride, the Church. She is the noble and delicate dove, the only one capable of bearing children to her divine Spouse” (St. Jeanne de Chantal).
Inner healing in God – Part VI
As we can see, God offers many ways to heal our souls in following Christ. The path of sanctification, to which we are all called, wants to lead us to total communion with God, which will reach its fullness in eternity. Once our wounded souls are completely healed and transformed, there will be nothing separating us from God. We will be totally unified with Him in love and experience the beatific vision—we will see Him as He is. We will experience this in communion with the holy angels and all those welcomed into heavenly glory. Then, man will have reached his eternal destination.
Inner healing in God – Part V
Prayer:
Thanks to faith, the Word of God, forgiveness of sins, and the healing power of the sacraments, humanity is rescued from perdition and led toward growing closeness with God. His healing and strengthening presence in the soul causes the new life of God to unfold within it. This new life, which restores the image of God in man, requires daily nourishment to grow and mature. The Lord provides this nourishment to us through the various means we have meditated on over the past few days, and most importantly, through a life of prayer.
St. Teresa of Ávila, a teacher of the interior life, calls prayer “the great dialogue with God.” Through prayer, our soul turns to God and becomes receptive to Him. God Himself calls us to prayer, and the Holy Spirit leads us ever deeper into it.
LOVE AND KNOWLEDGE
“Knowledge without love inflates; love without knowledge falls into error” (St. Bernard).
St. Bernard bequeathed this maxim to us. He himself affirmed that “to burn is better than to know.” And so it is!
Inner healing in God – Part IV
Holy Mass and Eucharistic Adoration
Faith restores our true relationship with God, and the Word of God nourishes it, granting us ever-deeper insight into the light of truth and shows us the way again and again. Through the forgiveness of sins, God opens the doors of His heart wide to us, allowing us to experience His unspeakable mercy. By experiencing God’s love through the sacraments of Baptism and Penance, the soul begins to heal from the consequences of having strayed from Him. It no longer lives in darkness and, despite all the struggles it still faces, it has found the way to be receptive to God’s grace and thus welcome His healing goodness. This new life is truly different; it restores man to his original beauty and dignity.
GOD’S LOVE IS GREATER
“Be serene and joyful, for my love is greater than your weakness” (Inner Word).
Inner healing in God (Part III)
Forgiveness
Thanks to the gift of faith, our awareness of our eternal destiny is awakened. The Word of God nourishes us daily, enlightening our understanding and dispelling the darkness of ignorance and error.
However, for this to take effect in one’s being, one’s sins must be forgiven because they weigh heavily on one’s life and obscure the relationship with God.
Through the death and resurrection of His son, God offers humanity forgiveness for their sins. It is an act of infinite love and mercy in which God takes on the sins of humanity to lift up fallen man.
HOLY SOBRIETY
“One can doubt man’s disposition, but not God’s plans, which will be fulfilled in a timely and importunate manner, even amidst of errors and darkness” (Interior Word).