Harvesting The Fruits of Contemplation

(Source: From Empty Hands ) Today we commemorate the life of St. Francis de Sales, Bishop and Doctor of our Church. His Introduction to the Devout Life is a timeless spiritual treasure that has had a profound impact on many a searching soul - including myself. But there are many other great books he left us, worthy of our time and reflection. One of them is “ Finding God’s Will for You. ” Since suffering is an inescapable part of our human condition – one which we have difficulty embracing - I thought, on this feast day of St Francis, that I would share the following brief excerpt from that Finding God’s Will for You in hopes that it would lead to fruitful contemplation on this great mystery of our Faith:. “…Job reflects that it is from God's hand that he received those good things,- thus testifying that he loved those goods not so much because they were good as because they had come from the hand of the Lord. Since this is so, he concludes that he must lov...

Pondering Tidbits of Truth is my simple and inadequate way of providing nuggets of spiritual wisdom for you to chew on from time to time. St. Vincent Ferrer   "...for when the soul is completely occupied by charity there is no longer any room in her for vanity. All that she thinks, says and does is inspired by charity...vanity finds no place in a heart filled with charity. What concern can he still have for temporal advantages, since he looks upon them as refuse? How can the desire for praise enter his heart, when he see himself before God as a vile dunghill, as a miserable sinner inclined toward every kind of sin and who would commit them all, did not the hand of the Creator constantly support him? How can he take pride in any good work when he sees clearer than daylight that he could do no  good if divine power did not impel him and constrain him, so to speak, at every moment?. How can he attribute anything whatever to himself when he has experienced not a hundred ...