Do not look forward in fear to the changes in life;
rather, look to them with full hope that as they arise,
God, whose very own you are,
will lead you safely through all things;
and when you cannot stand it,
God will carry you in His arms.
An Oblate quoted these lines from St. Francis de Sales in his annual Christmas letter. I read them during this “dark winter” of pandemic and political unrest on the national level, and the yet-unrealized full potential of the Covid-19 vaccination on the personal level of countless millions in this country and throughout the world.
Look at these situations “with full hope”? Wow, that is a challenge, isn’t it?
Still, our faith and Francis assure us that, “God, whose very own you are, will lead you safely through all things.” I am particularly comforted by these words, “God, whose very own you are.” You and I, each in our own unrepeatable uniqueness, are God’s very own. When that truth travels from the head to the heart, everything changes, doesn’t it? De Sales urges us in his Treatise on the Love of God to personalize the truths of our faith because, at its base, faith is not simply or principally a collection of doctrines to be believed but a personal love affair between God and each of us, “by first and last name,” as Francis assures us.
“And when you cannot stand it, God will carry you in His arms.” Now, those words really speak to me. They acknowledge that no matter how strong and personal our faith may be, there are times when they seem not to be enough. We know that we can’t save ourselves. Jesus does that. These words also remind us that, alone, we may not at times be able to handle the stress or the pain or the uncertainty of what is our lot. When that happens, “God will carry you in His arms.” He not only saves us from our sins, he also carries us when we hurt or are overwhelmed or are just stressed out by life.
At those moments God is like a loving parent who carries a frightened or hurting child in his or her arms, whispering words that we all heard at one time or other: “It’s Ok. I am here now. Everything is going to be ok.” At those moments, God is parent, and we are reassured, safe, and loved!
Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes. If we have a difficult time envisioning God as parent, I am sure this is not the case with Mary, the mother of Jesus and our mother as well.
During this long “dark winter,” let Mary’s healing and caring love carry each of us, her children, in her strong and motherly arms as she once carried the infant Jesus. She will whisper these words to us as she no doubt once whispered them to her baby son: “It’s Ok. I am here now. Everything is going to be ok.”
V. Rev. Lewis S. Fiorelli, OSFS
Provincial
Wilmington-Philadelphia Province
