A Meditation on the Memorial of St. Vincent de Paul

Two things I ask of you,
deny them not to me before I die:
Put falsehood and lying far from me,
give me neither poverty nor riches;
provide me only with the food I need;
Lest being full I deny you, saying,
“Who is the Lord?” Or, being in want,
I steal, and profane the name of my God. Prv. 30: 6-9

So great is God’s charity toward us that he provides well for all our needs; in him we lack nothing. Thus, our hope rests in God alone who knows our deepest concerns even before we vocalize them or before they are so much as imagined.

So great is God’s charity that by his Spirit’s teaching we learn in the depth of our hearts that there is nothing higher to which we may reach or aspire than the knowledge of him whose nature it is to empty his being upon the world as love.

Great indeed is his charity that he speaks to us, urging us along as we wander the way of life’s journey. By our Lord’s instruction we are to take with us only those things that are the necessary and bare essentials. It is a sign of faith in God to allow him to be the perfect and complete provider for us. We go forth rich abundantly in wisdom and grace, and rich also in the power and authority that he has given us as bearers of his sacred name received in baptism. To us he has given the commission that we might work earnestly to fulfill his will. May our prayer be that in him we have the strength to do as he bids us.

Above all things our God instills in us knowledge of the power and authority that comes from knowing him as love. Love bids us to accomplish feats that without his divine assistance we would have scarcely deemed possible; however, with the Apostle we are apt to say, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Indeed I can do all things through and by his love, but only in conjunction with his love. Without him my deeds, actions, and works return empty and meaningless.

It is love that is our excellent teacher; undeniably love is our master. Through love we learn to heal—we learn to provide for the needs of others in a way that God alone makes possible.

Among all the charities of God that we might celebrate, the greatest of all is the gift that is his word. My prayer always is that God would speak to my heart and that I would hear him. In this supplication I remember the prayers of my youth, and my desire to hear the voice of the Spirit speak clearly to me; I remember my sainted grandmother who would write while she prayed. She had no doubt that the Lord spoke to her.

Recently in the deacon office at my parish I found a print that someone had placed on one of the desks. It is a representation of St. Paul receiving dictation from the Holy Spirit, who is depicted in the form of a dove. I love depictions like this—they speak a witness to me of the faith that believes that we can hear from God and that in hearing we then act upon the word we have received. We faithfully proclaim what we have heard. The word of God comes to us mysteriously. It finds its way into our hearts in a manner that goes beyond mere mental comprehension, yet our knowing is an ever present witness to the presence of so great a love that causes us to proclaim, “The Lord provides for me. There is nothing I will lack.”

Comments

[Honora]

Amen :-)

Oh, exquisite.

[Gabrielle]

And His charity gives birth to our gratitude, which brings us more of His charity. A loving cycle.