Lectio
“Obedience need never be anxious, for there is no form of goodness which it does not possess in itself.”
— Meister Eckhart, Selected Writings, The Talks of Instruction
Meditatio
Jesus tells us to not be afraid, to fear not what tomorrow may bring, nor what we may gain or lose in this life because those who wish to keep what they have in this life will lose their life, but those who let go of what they have in this life will receive a hundredfold more reward from God. He tells us that the Father, who loves us so much more than all of His other creatures and yet provides for all of their needs without their needing to earn it, will provide for us in all things and, knowing what we need even more than we do, promises to never withhold it.
Anxiousness, says our Lord, will not add another day, hour, or minute to our lives, but obedience to the will of the Father opens our hearts to the eternal life He so freely offers. Obedience, however, does not promise us a life without suffering.
The Cross teaches us that, to suffer for the sake of love, to suffer for the sake of the Father’s will, is to submit to that very same love and to be obedient to that very same will. The Cross teaches us that God asks of us more than we can give without His help because what He asks of us is that we lay down our lives for something we may not see and cannot possibly understand, and that this voluntary pouring out of love for the sake of God and neighbor is not only the will of God, but the very life of God.
This act of obediential surrender to love, even when it hurts, or perhaps especially when it hurts, although it may not feel good at the time, possesses within it goodness itself because it possesses within it the very nature of God, whose own Son, out of obedience to the Father’s love for us, surrenders His life in love for us.
And so we need not be afraid, we need not be anxious, and we need not worry about gain or loss or what tomorrow might bring or take away, for as long as we give our lives over in love, we are obedient to the Source of all Love who gives Himself over to us, and with God’s gift of Godself in our hearts, what can the world do to us that will not benefit us in love?
Oratio
Candle To Candle
the flames rising
from the candles
upon the altar
do not fear the Word of God
spoken before them
they merely flutter
and flicker
dancing
with each breath of truth
reminding us of the Light of the world
and the faith of His followers
an unbroken succession
candle lighting candle
obediently carrying the flame
from Christ forward
that we may not fear
the world outside
for the Word of God
flutters
and flickers
dancing
with each breath of truth
within us
the faithful flames of love
Contemplatio
You do not have to hold your breath against the wind. The flame that flickers in you was never meant to stand still — it dances, and still it does not go out. Remain here a moment longer, not seeking to control what comes next, simply allowing His presence to have its way with you.
Related Scripture
“Who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death — even death on a cross.”
— Philippians 2:6-8 (NRSVCE)
For Further Reading
If you enjoyed this post, you may also like Burned Up With Love: Saint Gemma Galgani and the Flicker That Still Knows the Flame, which follows that same flame from flicker to Flame, showing how the fire that endures through fear and lost time is the very fire obedience asks us to tend without anxiety.
Robert Van Valkenburgh
Grappling With Divinity.
Wrestling With God.
Returning To Love.
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