A Little Book of Eternal Wisdom [13]
and forget Thy anger against me. Remember that Thou art
only called the Lord of Mercy, the Father of Mercy, because Thou forgivest.
Such is Thy name. To whom did Thou give Thy best-beloved Son? To sinners.
Lord, he is Mine! Lord, he is ours! This very day will I enclose myself with
His bare extended arms in a loving embrace in the bottom of my heart and
soul, and living or dead will never more be separated from Him. Therefore,
do Him honour today in me, and graciously forget that wherein I may have
angered Thee. For, methinks it were easier for me to suffer death than ever
to anger Thee, my heavenly Father, again. Neither afflictions nor
oppressions, neither hell nor purgatory, are such causes of lamentation to
my heart, as that I ever should have angered and dishonoured Thee, my
Creator, my Lord, my God, my Saviour, the joy and delight of my heart. Oh,
if for this I could give voice to my grief of soul, through all the heavens,
till my heart should burst into a thousand pieces, how gladly would I do it!
And the more entirely Thou forgivest my evil deeds, so much the greater is
my sorrow of heart at having been so ungrateful in return for thy great
goodness. And Thou, my only consolation, Thou my tender elected one, Eternal
Wisdom! how can I ever make Thee a complete and proper return of thanks for
having at so dear a rate healed and reconciled with Thy pangs and wounds the
breach which all created beings could not have made good? And, therefore, my
eternal joy, teach me how to bear Thy wounds and love-marks on my entire
body, and how to have them at all times in my keeping, so that all this
world, and all the heavenly host, may see that I am grateful for the
infinite good which, out of Thy unfathomable goodness alone, Thou hast
bestowed on my lost soul.
Eternal Wisdom.--Thou shouldst give thyself and all that is thine to Me
cheerfully, and never take them back. All that is not of absolute necessity
to thee shouldst thou leave untouched; then will thy hands be truly nailed
to My cross. Thou shouldst cheerfully set about good works and persevere in
them; then will thy left foot be made fast. Thy inconstant mind and
wandering thoughts shouldst thou make constant and collected in Me; and thus
thy right foot will be nailed to My cross. Thy mental and bodily powers must
not seek rest in lukewarmness; in the likeness of My arms they should be
stretched out in My service. Thy sickly body must often, in honour of my
dislocated bones, be wearied out in spiritual exercises, and rendered
incapable of fulfilling its own desires. Many an unknown suffering must
strain thee to Me on the narrow bed of the cross, by which thou wilt become
lovely like Me, and of the colour of blood. The withering away of thy nature
must make Me blooming again; thy spontaneous hardships must be to My weary
back as a bed; thy resolute resistance to sin must relieve My spirit; thy
devout heart must soften My pains, and thy high flaming heart must kindle My
fervid heart.
The Servant.--Now, then, fulfill Thou my good wishes, according to Thy
highest praise, and according to Thy very best will; for indeed Thy yoke is
sweet, and Thy burthen light: this do all those know who have experienced
it, and who were once overladen with the heavy load of sin.
CHAPTER VI. How Deceitful The Love of This World is, And How Amiable God Is
The Servant.--Sweetest God, if I leave Thee but a little I am like a
young roe which has strayed from its dam, and is pursued by the hunter, and
runs wildly about, until it escapes back to its cover. Lord, I flee, I run
to Thee with ardent desire, like a stag to the living waters. Lord, one
little hour without Thee is a whole year; to be estranged one day from Thee
is as much as a thousand years to a loving heart. Therefore, Thou branch of
salvation, Thou bush of May, Thou red blooming rose-tree, open and spread
out the green branches of Thy divine nature. Lord, Thy countenance is so
full of graciousness, Thy mouth so full of living words, Thy whole carriage
such a
only called the Lord of Mercy, the Father of Mercy, because Thou forgivest.
Such is Thy name. To whom did Thou give Thy best-beloved Son? To sinners.
Lord, he is Mine! Lord, he is ours! This very day will I enclose myself with
His bare extended arms in a loving embrace in the bottom of my heart and
soul, and living or dead will never more be separated from Him. Therefore,
do Him honour today in me, and graciously forget that wherein I may have
angered Thee. For, methinks it were easier for me to suffer death than ever
to anger Thee, my heavenly Father, again. Neither afflictions nor
oppressions, neither hell nor purgatory, are such causes of lamentation to
my heart, as that I ever should have angered and dishonoured Thee, my
Creator, my Lord, my God, my Saviour, the joy and delight of my heart. Oh,
if for this I could give voice to my grief of soul, through all the heavens,
till my heart should burst into a thousand pieces, how gladly would I do it!
And the more entirely Thou forgivest my evil deeds, so much the greater is
my sorrow of heart at having been so ungrateful in return for thy great
goodness. And Thou, my only consolation, Thou my tender elected one, Eternal
Wisdom! how can I ever make Thee a complete and proper return of thanks for
having at so dear a rate healed and reconciled with Thy pangs and wounds the
breach which all created beings could not have made good? And, therefore, my
eternal joy, teach me how to bear Thy wounds and love-marks on my entire
body, and how to have them at all times in my keeping, so that all this
world, and all the heavenly host, may see that I am grateful for the
infinite good which, out of Thy unfathomable goodness alone, Thou hast
bestowed on my lost soul.
Eternal Wisdom.--Thou shouldst give thyself and all that is thine to Me
cheerfully, and never take them back. All that is not of absolute necessity
to thee shouldst thou leave untouched; then will thy hands be truly nailed
to My cross. Thou shouldst cheerfully set about good works and persevere in
them; then will thy left foot be made fast. Thy inconstant mind and
wandering thoughts shouldst thou make constant and collected in Me; and thus
thy right foot will be nailed to My cross. Thy mental and bodily powers must
not seek rest in lukewarmness; in the likeness of My arms they should be
stretched out in My service. Thy sickly body must often, in honour of my
dislocated bones, be wearied out in spiritual exercises, and rendered
incapable of fulfilling its own desires. Many an unknown suffering must
strain thee to Me on the narrow bed of the cross, by which thou wilt become
lovely like Me, and of the colour of blood. The withering away of thy nature
must make Me blooming again; thy spontaneous hardships must be to My weary
back as a bed; thy resolute resistance to sin must relieve My spirit; thy
devout heart must soften My pains, and thy high flaming heart must kindle My
fervid heart.
The Servant.--Now, then, fulfill Thou my good wishes, according to Thy
highest praise, and according to Thy very best will; for indeed Thy yoke is
sweet, and Thy burthen light: this do all those know who have experienced
it, and who were once overladen with the heavy load of sin.
CHAPTER VI. How Deceitful The Love of This World is, And How Amiable God Is
The Servant.--Sweetest God, if I leave Thee but a little I am like a
young roe which has strayed from its dam, and is pursued by the hunter, and
runs wildly about, until it escapes back to its cover. Lord, I flee, I run
to Thee with ardent desire, like a stag to the living waters. Lord, one
little hour without Thee is a whole year; to be estranged one day from Thee
is as much as a thousand years to a loving heart. Therefore, Thou branch of
salvation, Thou bush of May, Thou red blooming rose-tree, open and spread
out the green branches of Thy divine nature. Lord, Thy countenance is so
full of graciousness, Thy mouth so full of living words, Thy whole carriage
such a