A story for every day...
The death of a deaf and blind bishop.
An elderly bishop had almost completely lost his hearing and sight. A priest who came to see him during his last illness admired his patience and resignation in all his sufferings. The bishop replied that he knew of a beautiful little prayer that brought him much relief through the grace of patience. The priest being curious to know this wonderful prayer, the bishop said to him: “I repeat every day: My Jesus I am almost blind, Thy holy will be done; my Jesus I am almost deaf, Thy holy will be done; my Jesus I can no longer fulfill my duties, Thy holy will be done.” Then he added with a smile, “When you will one day have much to suffer do the same, and you will see that this prayer will help you.”
The child who does not want to be punished.
A priest was called one day to the bedside of a father who was absolutely lacking in patience, and he had incredible difficulty in getting him to accept his sufferings with resignation. At the end of his strength he said to him, “Do you take pleasure in punishing your children?” He replied that he did not. “Well,” said the priest, “God does not take pleasure in punishing men either. But tell me, don’t you correct more severely when your children rebel?” The patient agreed that this was so, and the priest continued, “God does the same. When man struggles against the evils He sends him, He overwhelms him with greater misfortunes.” Our man understood that he was aggravating his sorrows by his impatience and he no longer murmured against God.
St. Ignatius in the storm.
St. Ignatius of Loyola had embarked for Rome when a terrible storm arose. A gale broke the main mast and the waves swept over the deck, endangering the ship. All the passengers were seized with fear and awaited death, while Saint Ignatius kept his composure. Where did this come from? The Saint had become accustomed to recommending himself to divine providence and to resigning himself completely to the will of God. In this way he maintained complete peace of mind in all circumstances.
The man who submits to the will of God is like a compass that always tends toward the pole, no matter how much it is shaken. In all sufferings he has only God in view and thus preserves inner peace.
