88th Meditation on God the Father
“My love for My creatures is so great that I have no greater joy than that of being among them.” (Message of the Father to Sister Eugenia Ravasio)
At first, these words are certainly surprising. If we do not remain with our eyes closed in the face of our own misery and if we get to know ourselves and other people a little, if we take a look at history and listen to the accounts of Sacred Scripture, the question will easily arise in us: “Lord, what is it that you find in us that you are so pleased to be in our midst?”
But the question is probably not the right one….
Perhaps we can formulate it rather in these terms, “How is it that you can love us so much, even though we are so often unfaithful to you?”
Perhaps the Father will answer: “For I myself am love (1 Jn 4:8)”. And then perhaps God will add: “I created you out of love and formed you wonderfully (cf. Ps 138:14), worthy to be loved. Your creation was my joy… And I saw that my work was very good (cf. Gen 1:31).”
“But, beloved Father, we did not remain faithful to you” – we would probably reply.
Perhaps our Father would reply, “Could I stop loving you because of that? I would be betraying myself! I never stopped loving you and, to draw you back to me, I loved you even more. I have always waited for you, at all times…”
In the face of such an answer, we will probably no longer find any objection and the astonishment and gratitude to be so loved by Him will arise in us… Little by little the certainty will penetrate us that a holy and perfect God wants to be with us, and that this is even His joy. Certainly we know this in theory and someone has already told us so. Some have perhaps come to understand it better… Nevertheless, it remains a mystery of divine love.
If we enter into this mystery and allow ourselves to be loved by God, all strangeness and insecurity will vanish. The fact that the Heavenly Father wants to be with us and that we are a joy for Him will become a reality for us, which will fill us with joy as well. Then let us invite our Father to remain with us forever. Not only will He be pleased with us, but He will also be our constant joy, which will reach its fullness in heaven!