293rd Meditation
“I live close to man, (…) I can see his needs, his toils, all his desires, and My greatest happiness lies in helping him and saving him” (Father’s message to Sister Eugenia Ravasio).
Today we look at another aspect that makes our Father happy. Two days ago we had meditated on His joy in being among us; today we consider His tender and paternal happiness in assisting us in all situations, in doing us good and caring for those He loves.
If we have children or work in something that connects us with people who need our help, we can understand this, for we too are happy to be able to help others.
But this does not only count for help on a practical level, it also extends to the pastoral level. How wonderful it is for a priest to give absolution in the sacrament of penance! How wonderful it is to be able to give spiritual advice, to pray for the souls in purgatory, to pass on to a person the most important thing, namely faith in Jesus Christ!
And if it is a deep joy for us who are evil to help (cf. Mt 7:11), how much more so is it for our Father to take care of His children and assist them! How many times does the Father save us? Countless times! How many times does He relieve our sorrows? Countless times! How many times does He fulfil our desires far beyond what we have asked of Him? Countless times! And if He does not fulfil them, it is because He has something better in mind for us.
It is good for us to hear that it is a joy for our Father to take care of us, that we are by no means a constant burden to Him, as we might sometimes suppose when we see our own weaknesses clearly.
We are always faced with the mystery of a God who is love. His love always envelops us and never loses sight of us.