Daily Thought For June 10, 2015

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Calling Upon God and Blessing Him in Time of Trouble


 May your name be blessed forever, Lord, for you have been willing to allow that I should have this trial and suffering. I cannot escape it, so of necessity I come to you, so that you may help me and turn it to my good.

 Lord, I am presently in tribulation and my heart is troubled; I am greatly afflicted by my present suffering. “Now my soul is troubled. And what should I say—‘Father, save me from this hour’?” (Jn 12:27). No, this is the reason I am here, that you might be glorified when, in my humiliation, I am delivered by you. “Be pleased, O LORD, to deliver me” (Ps 40:13), for poor unfortunate one that I am, what can I do and where shall I go without you? Give me patience, Lord, even for this time. Help me, my God, and I will not fear, no matter how distressed I am.

 And now, in the middle of all this, what shall I say? Lord, your will be done: perhaps I have deserved this affliction and this oppression. In any case, I must bear it until the storm passes and things get better. God, if you are willing I will endure it with patience, But your almighty hand is also able to remove this temptation from me and lessen its force as you have so often done in the past, O my God, my Mercy, so that I may not fall under it. The more difficult this is for me, the easier it is for your mighty arm to effect this change.
Thomas à Kempis. (2010). Solace in Suffering: Wisdom from Thomas à Kempis. (M. L. Hill, Ed.) (pp. 59–60). Boston, MA: Pauline Books & Media.

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