Todays Reading: 2 Corinthians 6
Take, Lord, and receive all my liberty,
my memory, my understanding,
and my entire will,
All I have and call my own.
You have given all to me.
To you, Lord, I return it.
Everything is yours; do with it what you will.
Give me only your love and your grace,
that is enough for me.
– Suscipe of Saint Ignatius
This prayer has been a constant on my mind for the last several weeks. During my days in pharmacy school at Creighton, I had the privilege to grow spiritually and prayerfully. I believe at one of the convocations or Masses I received a card that had this prayer on it. I kept the card in my bible and would read it every often. One day while meditating and reflecting on this prayer, I had an epiphany from the Spirit and I truly understood and realized the depth of the prayer. We face many difficult circumstances throughout the day and are granted many graces and mercies daily. But what I had fell to realize was this was all for God, given by God, for God’s glory.
In the reading we are reminded that we were given God’s grace and salvation at a most precious price, Christ’s blood. With this precious and delicate gift we cannot allow it to be in vain and not cherished and celebrated. Then Paul shows us that in the things that we have been through we have to change the looking glass and see it in the Glory of God:
4Rather, as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance; in troubles, hardships and distresses; 5 in beatings, imprisonments and riots; in hard work, sleepless nights and hunger; 6 in purity, understanding, patience and kindness; in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love; 7 in truthful speech and in the power of God; with weapons of righteousness in the right hand and in the left; 8 through glory and dishonor, bad report and good report; genuine, yet regarded as impostors; 9 known, yet regarded as unknown; dying, and yet we live on; beaten, and yet not killed; 10 sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything.
Many times the beatings and imprisonment and riots would be viewed as something to be shamed or depressed, but Paul shows that even in the lowest places and most inhumane situations God’s grace allows us to be able to see the bigger picture. It is not for that moment, but for something bigger than we cannot yet image.
So with this new understanding, I have found it essential to not allow His grace to be in vain and acknowledge Him in all the afflictions and hardships and praises and joys. I know that I when I return everything that have been given to me back to Him; he will use me and the events that I experience for His glory.
Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for your amazing and unending grace. Allow us to take peace in your presence as we live for you daily. Allow us to daily return all that we have, the good and the bad, the highs and low, the painful and joyous to you from whom all blessing and honor flows. Allow us to see you in all things. Amen