So that I may place them all, with much love, on the wood of their cross, I must prepare them for this ineffable and painful moment. They, like my Son Jesus, will have to be immolated on the cross for the salvation of the world.
Blue Book # 61 e
Yes, when you follow Christ, you take a risk. Every time you open your mouth you take a risk. You risk the disapproval of people, the anger of people, the dislike of people.
… So it’s very risky to follow Christ, and that’s why few do! Dear reader, think about that yourself, because each one of us has to face a different risk!
Grace in Every Season (March 23)
Our crosses are the places where our self-will goes to die! We can’t go forward with Christ hanging on to selfish desires… we need humility, and total abandonment to His Holy Will.
There is no one better than Our Blessed Mother with the help of the Holy Spirit to lead us and show us what needs to be laid down. Letting go is always painful … that’s why it is deemed an immolation. A sacrifice of self.
Only then can we go forward with the mission the Lord has for us. Not necessarily just one either… I call them ‘assignments’. Every single assignment has both a cross and a resurrection built into it.
When we first hear the call, the joy and excitement that draws us to it may be so great that we may not even be aware of the cross that sits at the core of it… oh but there will be one. But the good news is that there’s also grace to carry it and to fulfill the mission at hand. Of that you can have full confidence.