The Resurrection Will Dawn

   “When you feel in your own heart the suffering Christ, remember that the resurrection has to come.”  (Saint Mother Teresa, Thirsting for God: Daily Meditations)

   Mother Teresa often spoke of the poor as the face of Christ.  She saw the face of Jesus in those she helped and cared for.  The poorest, the sickest and the dying represented the suffering Christ and she served them just as she would have served Christ.  She felt the suffering of Christ in her heart as she did her work among the poorest and most needy.

   There are many ways to feel the suffering of Jesus in our lives.  We can serve the poor as Mother Teresa and many others have.  Through prayer and contemplation we can, to some degree, experience His suffering in our own life.  In prayerful study of the scripture we can see the prophesies of His suffering and the account of His life and the suffering He endured for our sake.

   At times our own life is affected to such a degree that our heart aches with the suffering and loss we experience.  It is these times when we can perhaps to begin to understand and truly know the suffering of our Lord.  It is also times such as this when our faith can deepen and grow to a level we never knew possible.

   Just as He suffered on the cross for us, we will suffer in the crosses we may be called to bear in this world.  Occasionally a cross is placed upon our shoulder that seems unbearable; beyond our ability to carry.  It is then that we can turn to Jesus and share in His suffering as He will share in our suffering with us.  Regardless of the depth of sorrow or loss, Jesus is there.  He will comfort, He will strengthen, He will carry us and our cross if needed.  That is the depth of His love for us.  Our resurrection from our sorrow and pain will surely come if we trust in Him.

Lord, help us share in your suffering as

You share in our pain out of love for us.

May we turn to you in our suffering,

Confident of Your eternal love and peace.

Amen