Suffer Well
The God Paradox - A beautiful tension
Photo By: Flickr/Dennis Macwilliam
“Thus says the LORD, your redeemer, who formed you from the womb: I am the LORD, who made all things, who alone stretched out the heavens, I spread out the earth by myself.” Isaiah 44:24
He is both charity and judgement.
He is mercy and justice.
He is love and law.
He is infinite and became finite taking on the form of a human.
He is the King of Kings who entered the world as the smallest of the small in a manger.
He is beyond the horizon and totally intimate.
He is the All in All who emptied Himself to nothing on the Cross.
He is abundance and poverty.
He is human and divine.
He IS.
Why is the path of love so narrow and yet so abundant? “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the is the gate that leads to destruction, and many enter through. But small is the gate and narrow is the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” Matthew 7:13
The path of love gives abundance but is narrow because of the beautiful tension of God. Those who immerse themselves in the Divine Will walk a tight rope poured over by grace that reveals the love of God as revealed in the law. The love and the law in union together. In following the law as a response to God’s call to us, we empty ourselves, fill up with God, and become more of who we are supposed to be. A beautiful tension of the emptying of self will, the filling of God’s will, and, as St. Catherine of Siena says, “Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire.”
The law was given to us by God to show us the path to happiness and holiness. But as St. Paul says, “If I speak in tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.” 1:Corinthians 13:1
If we spend our time in the law shooting poison arrows of judgement at the souls of others, without examining ourselves, we have not love.
On the other hand, if we disregard the law, saying we are doing it in the name of love, we reject what Christ Himself said, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.” Matthew 5:17
The law was written on our hearts by the love of God, and when we fill ourselves with the Divine Will the law helps us find true freedom, which is Jesus Himself. Our response to God’s loving gift should be to apply this law to ourselves, taking the narrow path. When we do this we walk in joy, peace, and bold confidence, knowing that God has filled the hole in our hearts to make us the best possible person we can be. Others take notice, and are drawn in because they recognize beauty and joy. “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them.” John 14:23
Live the beautiful tension of love and law. Take the narrow road. Christ will fill you with His Divine Will.
About the Author
My name is Susan Skinner. I am a native of Maryland and grew up attending
all Catholic Schools, including the Catholic University of America in
Washington, DC. In 1997, I moved South where I subsequently met my husband,
Jason. We now have three children. I am a certified catechist through
Aquinas College and I am an RCIA and Adult Faith Formation Coordinator at a
parish in the South. I have always identified as Catholic, but it was the
murder of my friend in 2010 that brought a transforming change to my heart
and made me a true disciple of Jesus Christ. I now make it my mission to
spread His Love and Good News everywhere I go. My friend's name was
Veronica, and so my blog is named Veil of Veronica. Jesus isn't just someone
we should just know about, He is someone we should KNOW, personally. He has
made me new and I know God has brought me to where I am. I am nothing
without him.
