October 25th Fast

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JMJ

"God was pleased all through my life to surround me with love, and the first memories I have are stamped with smiles and the most tender caresses. . . With a nature such as my own, had I been reared by parents without virtue or even if I had been spoiled. . . I would have been become very bad and perhaps have ever been lost.  . . Having nothing but good example around me, I naturally wanted to follow it."

(Saint Thérèse of Lisieux, Story of a Soul)

As Christians our greatest hope, our constant prayer, is to have our spouses, our children, our family members with us together in heaven.   Yet sometimes, in our earnest desire to bring others to Christ we forget working on our own relationship with Him first.  Many of the saints became saints because of the prayers, and vigilant care that their parents gave them.  They were attracted to the Faith, not by their parents' powerful preaching but by their patient love.

A holy couple is one that inspires one another, and those around them by their selfless love and quiet ways.  Peace reigns in a family where there are no clamors for admiration or attention when duty demands sacrifice.  All go about their duty in a joyful rhythm, looking to serve rather than be served, looking to express gratitude rather than grasping for it.  Yet, if joy is to radiate, it must first permeate our interior lives.  In the bustle and busyness of the day, in the demands and duties of daily life, we must return to the innermost place in our hearts and be close to Him that has called us to this life.  We must allow His light to shine brightly and not allow it to be dimmed by the incessant noises and distractions the world offers to us.

If we wish others to follow Him, we must first be near to Him ourselves.  If He has embraced the cross, so must we.  If He has trust in His heavenly Father, so must we.
When temptations arise, we can retreat to that place in our hearts and ask for the courage to stand athwart them.  When frustrations and anxieties threaten to disturb our serenity, Our Lord will be there to calm our fears.

In his most recent General Audience, the Holy Father encouraged his listeners to be like Mary, "united to Christ, in a steadfast relationship with Him."  Of His mother, He spoke, "Blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it."    Let us, too, maintain a consistent and strong relationship with Christ, and so bring others closer to Him as well.  We can only form disciples if we first learn to truly love and know the Master who formed us first.