Jacinta: Hello and welcome! This is two hearts true healing! I am your host Jacinta Wick. With me is Co host Angela Stansell. This is season 4 Episode 11. The Battleground of the Mind and the 14 rules of St. Ignatius Rule 11. Taking Strength. This episode we talk about humility and realizing what we can do with God. Take it away Angela!
Angela: Hi there! Here’s rule 11: “Let one who is consoled seek to humble himself and lower himself as much as he can, thinking of how little he is capable of in the time of desolation without such grace or consolation. On the contrary, let one who is in desolation think that he can do much with God’s sufficient grace to resist all his enemies, taking strength in his Creator and Lord.”
When we follow this rule, we grow in humility and find “security in God,” as Fr. Gallagher puts it on p. 140 of Discernment of Spirits: An Ignatian Guide for Everyday Living. The self talk we choose regarding our spiritual life sort of becomes two sides of the same coin. It’s as if in consolation we say to ourselves, “I can’t do anything without God, as all good comes from Him,” and in desolation we say to ourselves, “There is nothing I can’t do without God’s grace!” The fruit of this is spiritual balance.
Without this humility, we are like St. Peter on Holy Thursday. In Mark chapter 14 he says, “Even though all should have their faith shaken, mine will not be” and a little bit later, “Even though I should have to die with you, I will not deny you.” And yet he still goes on to deny Christ.
On p. 140 it’s pointed out that we tend to rely on our own spiritual strength. Humility means seeing ourselves accurately and realistically– not in an overly negative light nor an overly positive one. In consolation, part of humility means examining what we have done in desolation: How we have handled it? What rules went well? Which ones do we need more practice with? There we will find a more accurate measure of our spiritual strength. It serves as a helpful, sobering reminder, similar to the breaking of the glass at a Jewish wedding. In times of happiness, we can naively get carried away and forget what is most important, to our own detriment.
Julian Norwich sums it up nicely in her writings, entitled Showings. On p. 205, she write about an inspiration she has received from God:
This vision was shown to teach me to understand that some souls profit by experiencing this, to be comforted at one time, and at another to fail and to be left to themselves. God wishes us to know that He keeps us safe all the time, in sorrow and in joy; and sometimes a man is left to himself for the profit of his soul, although his sin is not always the cause. For in this time I committed no sin for which I ought to have been left to myself, for it was so sudden. Nor did I deserve these feelings of joy, but our Lord gives it freely when He wills, and sometimes He allows us to be in sorrow, and both are the same love.
There’s a common sales technique called “feel, felt, found.” Its original purpose is to convince a potential customer that their concern about a product or service is unfounded. It would go something like this, “I understand you feel wary of trying a new brand of vacuum cleaner. I’ve had customers who felt the same way, and when they tried out this new brand I’m selling here, they found it was a big improvement.” We can actually use the same concept within ourselves and for a nobler purpose. When we go through something difficult, we can use it to learn from our experience, to continue the practice of becoming aware– just in our own emotional/mental dealings and also spiritually. It might sound like, “Before I got in the pool, I was freezing cold and felt awful. I got in the water, and it became even worse! Then after a while, the feeling subsided, and now I’m quite comfortable. What I’ve found is that being in the pool can take some getting used to, but that the initial shock doesn’t last. I’ve found that that feeling is not worth listening to. If I had never gotten in the water, I never would have enjoyed swimming!”
In the spiritual life, it would be, “This consolation is so wonderful! God is so wonderful! I’m going to hang on to this forever! All my troubles are over; I’ve found Jesus! But no. This is a passing gift. The last time I was in desolation, I struggled with implementing the rules of St. Ignatius. I allowed myself to think, for a long time, that that feeling came from a lack of love from God, and that it would last forever. But now I see my thoughts made the desolation so much deeper. When I found the strength to keep my Sunday obligation, God met me there. I accepted the message given by the priest in the homily, and I accept once again the love of Jesus during Communion. I’ve found how much I really need to trust that God does love me always, even if I don’t feel it. I’m not going to feel this consolation forever, but I want to remember this consolation forever, especially when things become difficult.”
I’m going to finish up this time with a couple of book recommendations. One way to learn how to pray unceasingly through your ups and downs is to use the Psalms as a sort of scaffolding. They are, as inspired by the Holy Spirit, a beautiful framework for handling all of your feelings by taking them to prayer. After a while you may find yourself building on your own, so to speak, and conversing with God more naturally.
So the first recommendation is a book called “Psalm Basics for Catholics: Seeing Salvation History in a New Way” by John Bergsma. It’s not a terribly lengthy book, 160 pages, and it explains why the Psalms were written. What was going on with King David that led to these things being placed smack dab in the middle of the Bible? It’s informative without being overly serious, and even includes little stick drawings to help you visualize the spiritual journey of King David and God’s chosen people. The idea is that if this is how God and the psalmist related to one another during all kinds of ups and downs, we too can come to Him with anything and everything. It has even been said that the Blessed Mother’s favorite part of scripture is the Psalms.
The second recommendation I have is a little book that takes only about 5 minutes a day. “Daily Meditations on the Psalms” by Msgr. C. Anthony Ziccardi from Catholic Book Publishing gives an easily digestible snippet for each day of the year with a short reflection and prayer. There are of course countless resources to help one grow with the Psalms, including the daily Mass readings and Liturgy of the Hours.
Jacinta: The Psalms have also been huge for me too. Somehow just seeing that what I am experiencing is a part of the age-old struggle somehow gives me strength for the next step. I love how they help me see what the attitude of my heart should be. In my recent journey with the rules, I was reminded of the importance of seeing where the feelings are coming from. Is what I am going through due to a physical reason? If the answer is yes, then we do what we can to remedy the situation with God’s help. Sometimes the stress and burden is so difficult to carry. It feels never-ending. Like another step cannot be taken. Heavy and alone feelings are normal. This is when we need to trust that God is carrying us. Suffering is a part of life. We are going to have ups and downs. The best thing we can do is to hang on to the promise that God will not leave us alone. We can be feeling quite miserable and unseen and that is when we make a small prayer, “Lord, help me see!” And then we wait for the next step to be shown to us. When we see it, we take the next step. When we don’t, we keep to the post doing what we can to maintain and keep what we already have learned. We call to mind that God’s presence is not far from us and we think of times in the past where He has come to our assistance. When we keep God’s action before us, it becomes a little easier. Keep praying, journaling, studying.
Here are a couple of scriptures that can carry us through difficult times. “But the souls of the righteous are in the hand of God, and no torment will ever touch them. In the eyes of the foolish they seemed to have died, and their departure was thought to be an affliction, and their going from us to be their destruction; but they are at peace. For though in the sight of men they were punished, their hope is full of immortality. Having been disciplined a little, they will receive great good, because God tested them and found them worthy of himself; like gold in the furnace he tried them, and like a sacrificial burnt offering he accepted them. In the time of their visitation they will shine forth, and will run like sparks through the stubble. They will govern nations and rule over peoples, and the Lord will reign over them for ever. Those who trust in him will understand truth, and the faithful will abide with him in love, because grace and mercy are upon his elect, and he watches over his holy ones.” – Wisdom of Solomon 3:1-9
Does this mean that no hardship will come? No. It means that when it comes, we shall be carried. Like in the poem, “footprints.” It wasn’t that the speaker was left alone but that in the most difficult of moments, God carried him until he could stand on his feet again. It’s called being yoked with the Lord. “Come to me all who labor and are burdened and I will give you rest. Take my yolk upon you and you will find rest for your souls.” It doesn’t mean God will keep us from sharing the load. It means when we walk with Him, somehow it is easier. The importance of telling yourself the truth again comes to my mind. In difficulties when that next step seems the most difficult we say, “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.” And we do our best to take that next step.
Let’s go to a psalm that brings to mind God’s action in our life even when it gets quite dark. “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want; he makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters;* he restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil; for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil, my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.” – Psalms 23:1-6
Next time you find yourself in a pinch, take this psalm and recall the places He has brought you. Both the pastures and the dark valleys. How has He filled your cup? How has He brought you to streams? Actually picture this psalm in your mind and that you are one of the sheep. You will see that the Shepherd is not far from you and knows you, His sheep. What kind of particular love has He brought you? What are the little blessings that you see right in front of you now? (For example a loaf of fresh baked bread…Daddy is home for a day because of a snowstorm…Dinner is already in the slow cooker and little effort will be needed on my part today for meal prep. A conversation with a friend.) It helps to take the time to write them down when you are really struggling and keep going with the spiritual practices God has asked of you.
I have one more quote to strengthen and sustain you if you are in a hard place right now. “We’re told that in Scripture over and over and over. Jesus died for you! And, because He bought you at a great price, you have to understand that you’re never alone. You are very, very special to God. But some of you who don’t understand that think that God doesn’t care. I get that feeling myself sometimes. I’ve said to Our Lord, “Look, don’t You care? Whose side are You on?” I have myself been disheartened. But, in spite of the difficulties within and without, I try to keep my eyes on Jesus and know that Our Lord and Savior loves me, knows me, and has chosen me to be great in His eyes – to be holy, to be saintly, to be compassionate, and to be good.” – Mother Angelica, p. 44
An excerpt from Mother Angelica’s Guide to the spiritual life
Keep on my friends and know that you are not alone in the struggle! If there is any way we can pray for you to bring you to your next breakthrough, email us at prayer@twoheartstruehealing.com or for more suggestions or general inquiries at twoheartstruehealing@outlook.com. Stay connected with us on FaceBook and Substack or on our website www.twoheartstruehealing.com. Until next time, Go with God!