I wanted to share a few things that touched me on the weekend. Grace was all around, as I imagine it always is on a retreat, especially a silent one where so much work is done interiorly. These are some of the big things that spoke to my soul and made me go, "Ahh, yes".
"To rescue a slave, he gave away His son." - I am that slave. Slave to my sins and weaknesses.
"God is greater than our mistakes and sins." This always amazes me when I hear it and I need to hear it over and over. It's one of those head/heart things. My head wants to say, "yea, ok, I understand that. it's common sense, right?", but thankfully my heart knows just how much and often I need to hear it and is in awe as if it is the very first time.
"May my trust in Christ be proportioned to His Trust in ME" - This was one of the fruits we were to pray for during our meditation on Matthew 14:22-33. It's the story of the storm and Peter's walk on water. Father explained that the Apostles had been on a boat in a storm all night and then they see Jesus coming toward them, walking on the water. Peter's faith and trust in Jesus bring him to abandon the boat after hours of fighting the storm and walk on the water.
Father said, "Not by running away from challenges will we grow, but by facing them head-on. It is there that we meet Jesus, in our struggles. He can use our weaknesses in the solutions."
As long as Peter trusts Jesus, he walks on water. It reminds me of a song we used to sing years ago in New Orleans, "If I Keep My Eyes on Jesus, I can Walk on Water."
"Maybe things fall apart because I take the credit and I'm trying to control everything. I don't let God take care of things and I get in His way most of the time." Which of course = lack of trust. - This was HUGE for me. For the life of me I can't understand why I have such a hard time trusting such a loving, merciful, and trustworthy God who has proven all of those things to me over and over EVEN though He is God and doesn't need to prove anything to insignificant me. He also didn't have to die a horrible, tortuous, death for the selfish sins I commit everyday, but He did that also, because He can't bear the thought of spending eternity without me. Jesus, I trust in You.
And finally, (although I have so many more, I thought this was enough for now)
"God speaks with mankind, proposing a way of life, and awaiting a free response." which seems to go hand in hand with "Personal experience of God through prayer is HOW we taste and see how good God is." He never stops calling us to a life with Him. He has so much to give us, give ME. I need to respond to Him, spend time with Him, personally experience Him.
No comments:
Post a Comment