Station IX
JESUS FALLS THE THIRD TIME
COLLOQUY.----In many things I am too weak to follow Thee, dear Lord, but in the toilsome task of daily duty my very weakness makes me like Thee. I fall, oh, how many times! My falls bring with them soreness and dejection, the temptation to give up the struggle. But this, my dear Master, with the help of Thy grace I will never do----I will remember Thou art at hand still, the same Jesus yesterday, today, and for ever; indulgent, easily appeased, ready to forgive.
Ah, dear Lord, my God, my Jesus, Thou dost deplore far more than I do anything like estrangement between Thee and me----for Thou art my Father, and only waitest for me to turn to Thee with humble, sorrowful acknowledgment to put all right again. Tenderer far than a mother is the love of Thy Divine Heart----"I will have compassion on thee more than a mother."
This will be my consolation, dear Lord----I will think more of Thy Mercy than of Thy Justice, of having disappointed more than of having displeased Thee. Dear Jesus, by Thy weariness refresh me! Give me the trust in Thee that holds on its way, undismayed by slips and by bruises, fixed in its resolution to reach Thee at last. My Jesus!----Thou art watching, waiting, stretching out Thy arms to me. Draw me into Thy embrace when life is done, and, Jesus, my dear Master, reward me throughout eternity by possession of Thyself----a trust that has never failed. In Thee, O Lord, I have hoped, I shall never be confounded.
JESUS FALLS THE THIRD TIME
COLLOQUY.----In many things I am too weak to follow Thee, dear Lord, but in the toilsome task of daily duty my very weakness makes me like Thee. I fall, oh, how many times! My falls bring with them soreness and dejection, the temptation to give up the struggle. But this, my dear Master, with the help of Thy grace I will never do----I will remember Thou art at hand still, the same Jesus yesterday, today, and for ever; indulgent, easily appeased, ready to forgive.
Ah, dear Lord, my God, my Jesus, Thou dost deplore far more than I do anything like estrangement between Thee and me----for Thou art my Father, and only waitest for me to turn to Thee with humble, sorrowful acknowledgment to put all right again. Tenderer far than a mother is the love of Thy Divine Heart----"I will have compassion on thee more than a mother."
This will be my consolation, dear Lord----I will think more of Thy Mercy than of Thy Justice, of having disappointed more than of having displeased Thee. Dear Jesus, by Thy weariness refresh me! Give me the trust in Thee that holds on its way, undismayed by slips and by bruises, fixed in its resolution to reach Thee at last. My Jesus!----Thou art watching, waiting, stretching out Thy arms to me. Draw me into Thy embrace when life is done, and, Jesus, my dear Master, reward me throughout eternity by possession of Thyself----a trust that has never failed. In Thee, O Lord, I have hoped, I shall never be confounded.
The Ninth Station:
Jesus Falls the Third Time
My Jesus, even with the help of Simon You fell a third time. Were You telling me that there may be times in my life that I will fall again and again despite the help of friends and loved ones? There are times when the crosses You permit in my life are more than I can bear. It is as if all the sufferings of a life time are suddenly compressed into the present moment and it is more than I can stand.
Jesus Falls the Third Time
My Jesus, even with the help of Simon You fell a third time. Were You telling me that there may be times in my life that I will fall again and again despite the help of friends and loved ones? There are times when the crosses You permit in my life are more than I can bear. It is as if all the sufferings of a life time are suddenly compressed into the present moment and it is more than I can stand.
Though it grieves my heart to see You so weak and helpless, it is a comfort to my soul to know that you understand my sufferings from Your own experience. Your love for me made You want to experience every kind of pain just so I could have someone to look to for example and courage.
When I cry out from the depths of my soul, "This suffering is more than I can bear," do You whisper, "Yes, I understand"? When I am discouraged after many falls, do you say in my innermost being, "Keep going, I know how hard it is to rise"?
There are many people who are sorely tried in body and soul with alcohol and drug weaknesses who try and try and fall again and again. Through the humiliation of this third fall, give them the courage and perseverance to take up their cross and follow you.
Amen
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