Daily Collection taken from the memorial of St. Therese of the Child Jesus, Virgin
Collect: O God, who open your Kingdom to those who are humble and to little ones, lead us to follow trustingly in the little way of Saint Thérèse, so that through her intercession we may see your eternal glory revealed. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son…
“O God, who open your Kingdom to those who are humble and to little ones”
— We praise God because of his humble accessibility. Over half the world lives below the poverty line and has no real share in the political and economic powers of the world. The earthly kingdom of luxury and political power is open only to those who are extraordinarily talented, connected, or simply lucky. God, however, uses the weak and the little to shame such ideas of importance.
“lead us to follow trustingly in the little way of Saint Thérèse, so that through her intercession we may see your eternal glory revealed”
— We walk by faith, not by sight. In the end, God’s glory cannot be attained by our own power of discovery, but requires the humility and child like trust to simply follow where Faith commands us to go. The full flowering of this faith is to do all things with love for our God. The reward for this living faith is to finally see what we have believed.
Advice: Do you envy “powerful” and “influential” Catholics? Catholics who have some success in Hollywood or the media? Well-known Catholic speakers or important clergy members? To allow this envy is to continue to view the Church with worldly eyes. Militate against such thoughts, make acts of faith that the little way is best, that a mind set on service, preferably service that goes unseen, is the height of Christian “success.”
Little things done with great Love – Be on the lookout for some small act of service that you can do without being noticed and can offer to God in love: something like cleaning up the break room at work or picking up trash in a park or public area that no one cares for. If nothing else, we can almost always find more opportunities to pray for those in need.
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| St. Therese of Lisieux, pray for us! |