Daily Reflections on Divine Mercy

It is impossible for us to love and adore Christ deeply enough as He is present in the Most Holy Eucharist. When we are before Him, present in the Most Holy Eucharist, we should see the Almighty God present in veiled form. He is: Mercy, Eternal Life, The Eternal God, The Savior of Sinners, The Living Water, The Fire of Pure Love, The Medicine for All Our Ills, All Sentiments of Love, The Hope of A...

Praying “always” may seem like an impossible task. Is it really possible to do so? Does God even expect this of us? It most certainly is and He most certainly does. No, we will not be called to spend all day, every day, at church in prayer. Not even those called to the cloistered monastic life do as such. But praying always is a must. It simply means that we have developed such a habit of closenes...

There are many things in life we can become attached to. Sometimes we can even become attached to things that are good. Most often, what we become attached to is our own stubborn will. We want what we want when we want it. One key to authentic holiness is to strive to be detached from everything but God and His holy Will. This requires much “letting go” in our lives and much surrender (See Diary #...

Imagine a dictator of a country who has absolute power and is also a very angry, malicious and vengeful man. This is not someone you would want to upset. Now imagine the opposite. Imagine one who has absolute power and is also blessed with a heart of pure Mercy. This is our God. And in addition to our God having these qualities, He passes them on to His Mother. She is Queen and exercises her queen...

If you have prayed the “Hail Mary” prayer, then you have prayed for your last hour in this world: “Pray for us now and at the hour of our death.” Death is frightening to many people, and the hour of our death is not usually something we want to think about. But the “hour of our death” is a moment we should all look forward to with the utmost joy and anticipation. And we will look forward to it onl...

Mother Mary endured so much in life. She endured suspicion and ridicule at the miraculous conception of her Savior. She watched with a perfect motherly love as her Divine Son was rejected and misunderstood. And she stood by Him in His agony and death. And through it all, her motherly love was perfect and powerful. She stands by us, also, in all that we endure in life. And she gives us a perfect wi...

The most basic desire we have is for happiness. Everything we do, in some way, is done so as to help us achieve this goal. Even sin is committed with an erroneous sense that it will lead us to happiness. But there is one source of human fulfillment and one source of authentic happiness. That one source is God. Seek our Divine Lord as the fulfillment of every human longing that you have (See Diary...

It is most certain that our Divine Lord knows all things. He is aware of every thought we have and every need we carry far more than we will ever realize. At times, as we come to realize His perfect knowledge, we may expect Him to answer all our needs even if we do not acknowledge them. But our Lord often wants us to ask. He sees great value in us discerning our needs and offering them to Him in c...

Perhaps everyone has experienced an unjust accusation by another. It may be because another is honestly mistaken about the facts or about our motivation for what we do. Or, it may be more malicious and cruel. Being falsely accused can be quite painful and will most likely tempt us to react in anger and defensiveness. But what is the proper response to such nonsense? Should we weary ourselves with...

The Blessed Sacrament is truly sacred. It is revered and treated with the greatest respect. We would never throw our Lord away or discard Him on the floor or in some irreverent place. And yet we often fail to treat others with the same respect we show Jesus present in the Sacred Host (See Diary #285). Do you realize that each person is a tabernacle? Each person is an image of God and is precious a...

Is there a difference between “sympathy” and “compassion?” If so, what is the difference? And which is more desirable? Sympathy simply means that we feel bad for another. It means, in a sense, that we pity them. But compassion goes much further. It means that we enter into their sufferings and carry their burden with them. It means we suffer with them just as our Lord suffered with and for us. We...

The more we come to know Jesus, the more we desire Him. And the more we desire Him, the more we come to know Him. This is a beautiful cyclical experience of knowing and desiring, desiring and knowing (See Diary #273). Do you desire to know your precious Lord? Do you long for Him in a burning way? Reflect upon this desire in your soul and if it is lacking, know that it’s because you need to come to...

When God enters your soul, He acts in such a way that you will never fully comprehend His workings. His grace and Mercy are such that they remain a mystery deeper than the oceans and more vast than the upper limits of the Universe. Understanding the incomprehensible nature of God’s grace is, in fact, the first step to wisdom. It’s the first step to realizing the omnipotence of God and His infinite...

It is a grace from God to see ourselves as we are. And what will we see if we see ourselves this way? We will see our misery and nothingness. At first, this may not be all that desirable. It may even seem contrary to the dignity we have in Christ. But that’s the key. Our dignity is “in Christ.” Without Him, we are nothing. We are misery and nothingness by ourselves (See Diary #256). Today, do not...

Which image of Christ are you more comfortable with? Which image do you more easily identify with? The image of Christ glorified as King of all? Or the image of the beaten and suffering Christ? In the end, we will fix our eyes on the Lord in glory and majesty and this will be our delight for eternity. However, while we are pilgrims in this earthly life, the suffering Christ should dominate our min...

We all encounter struggles in life. The question is: “What do you do with them?” Too often, when struggles come our way we are tempted to doubt the presence of God and to doubt His merciful help. In fact, the opposite is true. God is the answer to every struggle. He alone is the source of all we need in life. He is the One who can bring peace and serenity to our soul in the midst of any and every...

When others do well, how do you react? Most likely when a child does well it brings delight to your soul. But what about others? A sure sign of a merciful heart is the ability to sincerely find joy in the good that others do. Too often jealousy and envy get in the way of this form of Mercy. But when we delight in the goodness of another and rejoice when God is at work in someone’s life, this is a...

Some acts of love are meant to be shared only between lovers. Acts of the utmost intimacy and self-giving are precious gifts of love shared in the secrecy of a relationship of love. This is also the case with our love of God. We should regularly look for ways to express our most profound love of God in ways that are known only to Him. In return, God will lavish merciful graces upon us, interiorly,...

Some people, day in and day out, experience the harshness and cruelty of another. This is quite painful. As a result, there can be a strong desire for justice so that the person causing pain be held accountable. But the real question is this: What is the Lord calling me to do? How shall I react? Shall I be an instrument of God’s wrath and justice? Or shall I be an instrument of Mercy? The answer i...

Are you comfortable calling Jesus your Master? Some may prefer to call Him “friend” or “shepherd.” And these titles are true. But what about Master? Ideally, we will all come to give ourselves to our Lord as the Master of our lives. We must not only become servants, we must become slaves. Slaves of Christ. If that doesn’t sit well then ponder simply what sort of Master our Lord would be. He would...

When you are at church, do you listen? Specifically, do you listen to the voice of God? Often times we sit and listen to the homily and our mind wanders and we miss all or most of what was said. Where does your mind wander? The truth is that sometimes a wandering mind is from the Lord. Sometimes there may be one thing said at Mass that our Lord then places on your heart to ponder. Do not be afraid...

When speaking to others, the love and Mercy of God must flow from our lips. But how? What should our speech look like? One way to examine our speech to others is to look at it in the light of how we should speak to God. When speaking to God we should speak with honesty, simplicity, humility and confidence. Think of a sincere child praying to God. This pure soul exudes these qualities well. So shou...

Do small sacrifices matter? Sometimes we can think that we should try to do great things. Some may have ideas of grandeur and dream of accomplishing some great feats. But what about the small, monotonous, daily sacrifices we make? Sacrifices such as cleaning, cooking, helping another, forgiving, etc.? Do the small things matter? Most certainly. They are a treasure we give to God like none other. S...

Could you be happy if you were in prison? Or what if you were called at a young age to enter a cloistered monastery and live in seclusion throughout your life? Could you find happiness if you were living in the utmost poverty having barely enough to feed your family each and every day? The answer is “Yes.” You most certainly can find happiness within any situation of life. How? Happiness is not de...

Does your soul feel like it is in a spiritual drought at times? Do you wish you could have greater spiritual consolation in your daily life? This is a common struggle and one that we should not worry about. The primary goal of our spiritual life is to do the Will of God. Often times, a certain spiritual dryness actually helps us live the Will of God more than powerful and emotional spiritual conso...