What is the Office of Consoling? [224]

August 7, 2019
One month anniversary of (my) Mom's passing

"She who gave birth to you is no longer here. The closest tie you can have on this earth has been broken."
deep sadness, time of grief, grieving.

These are the thoughts that come to me today.

Prayer

Thank you Lord, for the gift of my mother.

Thank you for her love and her grace.

Thank you for all that she has done for me, and for all now that she will do for me in her place in heaven.

I ask you to bless her, and to hear her prayers for us.

Keep her strong in your eternal Kingdom, with Dad and all who are with her.

I love you, Lord.  I love you.

My heart is full; there is both love and pain there, living side by side.

I give you my heart Lord, I give you my pain, my sorrow, my sadness.

Never have I felt such sadness as now.  It weighs heavy upon me, upon my soul, yes, but also upon my body.

I give you this Lord, all of it.

And I wait.  I wait for your strength, your joy, your solace, your comfort.

And when it is my time, I pray for your comfort for those I love, those I too will leave behind.  Give them your Love now Lord, that they may bear it in due time.

For your sake Lord, not for mine. That they will turn to you, and love you, not for what you will do, but for who you are, our loving and caring God.

In Jesus' Name

I pray. Amen.

Thank you Lord, for this time, for this prayer. Amen.

(Reflection today on the Canaanite woman, who shouted to the Lord for her daughter)

Matthew 15:21-28

I have been feeling exhausted, heavy in body, mind, spirit.

As I spoke to the Lord about my child, praying for him, the Lord gave me to understand that I was still grieving.  It has only been one month since mom passed.  Today is the first month anniversary.

Each day I think of calling her, so I miss this.  My sister too has mentioned this to me, and I am sure that we are all feeling this.

As I read the Scripture, I asked the Lord to speak to me. "Speak, Lord, your servant is listening."

Here and there in this journal (that I am writing in now) which I had given her years ago for Mother's Day, are Mom's notes from her garden thoughts, her plans, what she has done, her wishes and instructions.

My grieving is interspersed with garden wisdom.  This is also how she fed our bodies, our thoughts, our souls, our spirits - even to the end - with words of wisdom, love, encouragement.

Thank you Lord. Thank you.

I hear these words in my heart,

"The Canaanite woman came to me with all the desires of her heart for her child, and I heard her and answered her prayer - Shall I not also hear and answer your prayers for those you love?

Trust in me my child; Trust in me."

Thank you, Lord God.

Encouraging words in my persevering prayers for my children, and for all for whom I pray.  The Canaanite woman shouted; my prayers are like this.

She kept shouting.

I keep praying.

Thank you for this encouragement, Lord.

Amen.

I read the French meditation for today, August 7, 2019, in Prions en église,

"Welcoming takes two!  On her part, the Canaanite woman welcomes Jesus with her mentality and the hope that she nourishes in her heart.  For his part, Jesus listens attentively and with respect. and he discovers that, as pagan as she is, a deep faith lives in her, which opens her up to his work in her life."

I sit in the quiet, as I feel a filling in my heart, Peace and Comfort, a bubbling feeling in my heart, my breastbone area.  I welcome you, Lord. I welcome you. Amen.

And I feel peaceful and rested now, a smile coming from within is now on my face.

Thank you Lord. Thank you.

A beautiful healing has taken place, a lightening, a lifting of  heaviness, a sadness, a pain. Thank you Lord Jesus.

Thank you.  Amen.

[224] Fifth Point. The fifth is to consider the office of consoling which Christ our Lord bears, and to compare how friends are accustomed to console friends.

In contrast to the passion, I should note how much the divinity shines through the person of Jesus in all his appearances. The peace and the joy which he wants to share with me can only be a gift of God.  To realize that the role of consoler which Jesus performs in each of his resurrection appearances is the same role he performs now in my life is a faith insight into why I can live my life in a true Christian optimism.

DRAW ME INTO YOUR FRIENDSHIP by David L. Fleming, S.J.

The Spiritual Exercises

A Literal Translation & a Contemporary Reading.

[218] The First Contemplation
How Christ our Lord appeared to Our Lady
[224] Fifth Point (as above)