Ignite Your Spiritual Life

I grew up being told that God is loving and merciful. I grew up being told that He forgives our sins and desires our love. And although I was told these things it took a long time for them to actually sink in. These are just words. They’re beautiful words that are music to the ears but they are just words. And until you experience the depth behind these words you can never truly understand what they say about God.

I just finished reading St. Faustina’s Diary – Divine Mercy in My Soul. This book was one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever experienced. And when I say experienced, I mean it. Her words evoke deep thoughts and feelings that fill in the emptiness beneath the overused words of love and mercy. These words come alive on the page as if God is reaching out to you. As if you are the most beloved and perfect thing he has ever laid eyes on.

Each encounter that St. Faustina relayed left me feeling as if I were there with her, experiencing God’s love. Though she was a great Saint with many graces, her story is still relatable and still very human. She answered so many questions that I have found on my faith journey. She made me feel like I had someone to look up too and emulate in the most perfect way. She made me feel that God actually does love me.

It is one thing to be told that God loves you. That you can turn to Him for His Mercy. But it’s an entirely different thing to experience His love for yourself, to feel it rattle and shake your soul, and to feel it make you come alive. It’s another thing to experience His mercy and feel a resounding confidence in turning to Him in everything.

I am sad to have finished the book. I’ve spent the past 6 months reading a few pages a day and feeling God’s love and mercy in a new way. Now, those words I’ve heard so often have come alive. They hold true, deep meaning for me, and I know as many times as I sin is as many times as I can turn to his Mercy. I know in every up and down of life the phrase “Jesus, I trust in you” holds so much power. I know that there is a gentle, loving God guiding me closer to himself each day.

Her story is incredible. I urge you to pick up a copy. To dive in deep to her words and experiences. Let her change the way you approach God. Let her show you the depth and meaning behind His love and mercy. We are not on this road alone, we are not without love. 

I found it most useful to take it slow. This isn’t a book you’re going to sit down with and finish in one day. Let it become a part of your morning or evening prayer routine. Take time to sit with the words and sincerely pray the prayers. Soak up all the love and mercy you can from these pages and take them with you into your day. 

Act in such a way that all those who come in contact with you will go away joyful. Sow happiness about you because you have received much from God; give, then, generously to others. They should take leave of you with their hearts filled with joy, even if they have no more than touched the hem of your garment.

St. Faustina