3 Tune into ‘Mercy Unbound’ Our EADM internet series called “Mercy Unbound” is going strong and has posted more than 150 wonderful interviews from a plethora of guests. You can watch the video or listen to it as a podcast at DrBryanThatcher.com. Click on “Watch” at the top and you will see a variety of speakers and topics. The shows are all free. Please subscribe and share as that will help the series grow and get more exposure on YouTube. Help us spread the word about the truth and beauty of our faith! Want to start a cenacle? Visit TheDivineMercy.org/cenacle for details. After reviewing, please call 1-877-380-0727 for more information and materials. In 1997, EADM hosted a large “Divine Mercy as a Way of Life” event. We had more than 1,100 people in attendance, and it was a beautiful event. I never understood why I chose that title until years later. As I traveled and spoke across the U.S. and numerous countries, people would tell me, “We know all about Divine Mercy. We pray a Chaplet every Friday after Mass.” Or, “We know all about Divine Mercy, we celebrate the Feast Day every year.” Or, “We know all about Divine Mercy. We have an Image in our church.” While the beautiful Image, Feast Day, and Chaplet are powerful devotional tools and expressions of God’s mercy for us, we must also be reflections of the Image and be vessels of love and mercy to our family, friends, and co-workers. It is much more difficult to live the message than it is to recite the Chaplet or hang an Image in our home. In my travels, I have found that forgiveness is a major stumbling block to spiritual advancement. It is a moral virtue and not a weakness; it is an act of mercy to someone who has acted unjustly to us. Forgiveness does not mean we condone or excuse the act. It doesn’t mean we forget the injustice — it’s a virtue one decides to do even if the other person does not want reconciliation. We pray the Our Father prayer at Mass and ask, “Father, forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us,” and yet often we don’t forgive! Trust in God is easy when things are going well, but what happens when we get the call from the doctor’s office that we have cancer, or our loved one has Alzheimer’s disease? Or news that one of our children is getting a divorce? It is at these times that our faith is put to the test. Trusting in God means we do our best, walking in this valley of tears, but staying close to Jesus and keeping our eyes on Him. But instead of maintaining our inner peace, fear, exaggerated anxiety, and discouragement take over, and we lose everything we prayed for. For many, the fear of the cross is greater than the cross itself. We must let “Jesus, I Trust in You” be our anchor in life! Living the message also means that we embrace our crosses and accept them as Jesus accepted His. Remember the pain that St. Faustina endured from advanced tuberculosis? But she joined her sufferings to those of Jesus on the Cross, and as she suffered, she had joy, as she suffered out of love of God. She wrote in Diary entry 446 as she saw Jesus on the Cross: When He had hung on it for a while, I saw a multitude of souls crucified like Him. Then I saw a second multitude of souls, and a third. The second multitude were not nailed to [their] crosses, but were holding them firmly in their hands. The third were neither nailed to [their] crosses nor holding them firmly in their hands, but were dragging [their] crosses behind them and were discontent. Jesus then said to me, Do you see these souls? Those who are like Me in the pain and contempt they suffer will be like Me also in glory. And those who resemble Me less in pain and contempt will also bear less resemblance to Me in glory. Reflect on this quote: “If the angels were capable of envy, they would envy us for two things: one is the receiving of Holy Communion, and the other is suffering” (Diary, 1804). Lastly, we must try harder to get out of ourselves and our problems and try to see the needs and wants of others. Saint Faustina wrote, “God’s love is the flower — Mercy the fruit” (Diary, 949). Mother Teresa tried to instill in her nuns that they must see Jesus Christ in each of the dying beggars that they encountered. That is a reiteration of Sacred Scripture as Jesus tells us that, “I assure you, as often as you did it for one of my least brethren, you did it for me” (Mt 25:40). And as St. James wrote, “Be assured then, that faith without works is as dead as a body without breath” (Jas 2:26) This concept emphasizes that faith should not be passive but should lead to good deeds as one radiates the love of God. The needs of the poor can at times be overwhelming, and Mother Teresa said she was to share God’s love to “one soul at a time.” But as we begin to reach out to others, we begin to see the needs of others and we find great joy. Let us pray for an infusion of the Holy Spirit so that we can better live the message of mercy and become living icons of the Merciful Savior! Divine Mercy As A Way of Life By Bryan Thatcher, MD
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