Neglect

“But woe to you Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and every herb, and neglect justice and the love of God; these you ought to have done, without neglecting the others.” (Luke 11:43).

Christ int he Synagogue (Gustave Dore)

Why am I here? What is my purpose?

The older I get the more I ask myself these questions.  It is not because I cannot see value in my life, but rather, it is because I am comforted by the idea that if I can focus on my purpose, then I have some chance of pleasing my Beloved.

Things can be terribly difficult sometimes.

Sometimes my children do not want to be my friends, or my husband is difficult or work is difficult or I am lonely or scared.  Sometimes, life itself gets in my way.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church tells us that we are born to know, love and serve God and to be with Him forever in Heaven.  That is my purpose.

And that means that I must be one-hundred percent in.

Saint Faustina documented the words of Christ where He lamented the pain that was caused to Him by the ambivalence of souls.  Souls who were lukewarm to God are souls who cause God great pain.

And I have been thinking about why.  And I can sort of see it.  Christ dies in agony on the Cross – He suffered for thirty-three years before that through fasting and abstinence and travel and poverty.  He sacrificed more than any Saint ever could – think only of the forty days He spent in the wilderness without food or shelter.  And now imagine a lukewarm soul – watching, with a slight smirk.  Not really engaged.  Looking with curiosity at the suffering Lord.  Not stopping for long enough to offer a sip of water or a brief comforting word.  Instead, slinking away and forgetting the greatest torment the world has ever seen as though it never existed…

That is a lukewarm soul who neglects God!

And that was what Christ spoke out against when He spoke to the Pharisees…

“But woe to you Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and every herb, and neglect justice and the love of God; these you ought to have done, without neglecting the others. Woe to you Pharisees! For you love the best seat in the synagogues and salutations in the market places.” (Luke 11:42-46).

He was not interested in a tithe or a tax or a little bit of something to show loyalty and love and respect to God.  Christ did not come for lukewarmness.  He came to bleed out every last drop of His blood for love of me – and for love of you, too…

And I have been thinking about that today as I have been thinking about the heat of my love for God.  For it seems to me that I am strolling past the Cross and looking over my shoulder at my Beloved Lord, dying on that Cross, bleeding out his blood even to its last drop, and I do not even love Him enough to be a little less lukewarm.  How much suffering I have caused my Beloved through my neglect!  How much terrible suffering through the neglect of my soul for love of Him…

For with prayer, I stand on Holy Ground where everything is clear. Here. At the Foot of the Cross.