LETTER XVIII.--Will of God to be Preferred.
To the same Sister.
Believe me, my dear Sister, and put an end to all your fears
and entrust all to divine Providence who makes use of hidden
but infallible means of bringing everything to serve His ends.
Whatever men may say or do, they can only act by God's will
or permission, and everything they do He makes serve for the
accomplishment of His merciful designs. He is able to attain
His purposes by means apparently most contrary, as to refresh
His servants in the midst of a fiery furnace, or to make them
walk on the waters. We shall experience more sensibly this
fatherly protection of Providence if we abandon ourselves to
Him with filial confidence. Quite recently I have had experience
of this, therefore I have prayed to God with greater fervour
than ever to grant me the grace never to have my own will
which is always blind, and often dangerous, but always that His
which is just; holy, loving, and beneficent may be accomplished.
Ah! if you only knew what a pleasure it is to find no peace or
contentment except in accomplishing the will of God which
is as good as it is powerful, you would not be able to desire anything else. Never look upon any pain, no matter of what kind,
as a sign of being far from God; because crosses and sufferings
are, on the contrary, effects of His goodness and love. "But,"
say you, "what will become of me if . . . ?" This is indeed
a temptation of the enemy. Why should you be so ingenious
in tormenting yourself beforehand about something which perhaps will
never happen? Sufficient for the day is the evil thereof.
Uneasy forebodings do us much harm; why do you so readily
give way to them? We make our own troubles, and what do
we gain by it? but lose, instead, so much both for time and
eternity. When we are obsessed in spite of ourselves by these
worrying revisions let us be faithful in making a continual
sacrifice of them to the sovereign Master. I conjure you to do
this, as in this way you will induce God to deal favourably with
you and to help you in every way. You will acquire a treasure
of virtue and merit for Heaven, and a submission and abandonment which will enable you to make more progress in the ways
of God than any other practice of piety. It is, possibly, with
this view that God permits all these troublesome and trying
imaginations. Profit by them then, and God will bless you.
By your submission to His good pleasure you will make greater
progress than you could by hearing beautiful sermons, or reading
pious books. If you only understood this great truth thoroughly,
you would enjoy great peace of mind, and advance rapidly in
the ways of God. Without this submission to His good pleasure
no spirituality counts for much. As long as people restrict themselves
to exterior practices, they can but have a very thin veneer
of true and solid piety which consists essentially, and in reality,
in willing in everything what God wills, and in the manner
in which He wills it. When you have attained to this, the Spirit
of God will reign absolutely in your heart, will supply for all
else, and will never fail you in your need if you call with humble
confidence for His help. This is of faith, but is known to very
few souls who are otherwise pious. Thus, for the want of this
disposition we see them kept back and obstructed in the ways of
God. What a pitiful blindness! All the business and complicated affairs
in which we are immersed by God's will and by the
decrees of His divine Providence, are equal to the most delightful
contemplation, if one says from the bottom of one's heart,
"My God, this is Your will, and, therefore, also mine." Although
this is said only in the higher part of the soul without the
will seeming to take any share in it, still the sacrifice is no less
agreeable to God, and meritorious for oneself. Keep with a firm
determination to this practice and you will soon experience its
excellent results. If you could also combine with it a certain
peace and quietness of mind, a certain gentleness of manner
towards others and also towards yourself, without ever showing
signs of annoyance, worry, or vexation, what great and meritorious
sacrifices you will have made! At least humble yourself
gently after all your faults, and return to God with confidence as if
nothing had happened, as the "Spiritual Combat" teaches.
As we can never enjoy happiness or peace in this miserable
world except in proportion as we blindly submit to the decrees
of divine Providence, I shall continue to speak to you about it
untiringly. Believe me and rely on divine Providence alone,
and abandon everything to His care absolutely and without
reserve. Do with simplicity what you believe you ought to do
under the circumstances, so as not to tempt God, but do it
gently, quietly, and without effort, trouble, excitement, or eagerness;
as St. Francis of Sales advises. Of how many anxieties,
disappointments and forebodings should we not rid ourselves,
if we could only act in this reasonable and Christian manner.
