how to accept the grace of divine intimacy
“Into a soul that plots evil wisdom enters not, nor dwells she in a body under debt of sin.” —Wisdom 1:4
If we wish to be close to God and to keep the faith rather than lose it, we must:
- not test God (Wis 1:2). God has already proved Himself on the cross and in millions of other ways. We need to be tested, not Him.
- not disbelieve God (Wis 1:2). Some doubts are steps toward faith, but others are a refusal to accept the gift of faith. These doubts must be dismissed, not entertained.
- repent of making perverse and senseless counsels (Wis 1:3, 5; cf Eph 5:3-4). We may have plans that we know are not of God. We either change these plans or separate ourselves from the Lord.
- repent of our sins and let Jesus pay our debt of sin (see Wis 1:4).
- not disdain the discipline of the Lord (see Wis 1:5; Heb 12:5).
The Lord wants to live in us. God, Who is Love (1 Jn 4:8, 16), wants to be Love in us. He also wants us to live in Him and have an intimacy with Him beyond anything we can imagine. He will do this miracle of love. All we need do is to cooperate with His grace by following His directions.
Prayer: Father, make every aspect of my life reflect my commitment to live for You alone.
Promise: “The apostles said to the Lord, ‘Increase our faith,’ and He answered; ‘If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this sycamore, “Be uprooted and transplanted into the sea,” and it would obey you.’ ” —Lk 17:5-6
Praise: Jerry goes to Confession at least monthly.
Reference: (For a related teaching on Effects of Sin, order, listen to or download our CD 81-3 or DVD 81 on our website.)
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