Pillars of Fire In My Soul

She seemed to deliberately seek opportunities to improve her conscious contact with God in order to discern God’s will for her, to give thanks for all that God did for her, and to open her heart to be an instrument of God’s love and mercy in the world. The family was so poor that Josephine, Genevieve, and Helen shared one good dress among them, and had to take turns attending Sunday Mass. On the Sundays when she had to stay at home, Helen would go into the garden and read from a prayerbook while Mass was going on. Even when her mother called to her to come help, Helen would not respond. When she knew that the celebration of the Eucharist had finished, Helen would go to her mother and ask for forgiveness. “I have to do my duty to God first,” she would explain. During the preparation for making her First Communion, she became aware that attending Mass was essential to her spiritual life. Somehow three dresses were found so that all of the older girls could attend Sunday Mass. She had a great devotion to the Blessed Sacrament, and during her night prayers would face in the direction of a church where the Blessed Sacrament was reserved. St. Faustina’s life teaches us that to answer God’s call to holiness, we must make God our priority and balance our inner prayer life with deeds of mercy. When she was about seven she attended a Vespers service where, before the Blessed Sacrament, she promised her life to Jesus and created a special “cell” inside her heart where she could go to be with Jesus in quiet. The strength she drew from this contemplative prayer life enabled her to serve God actively, working cheerfully, speaking kindly to others, responding with compassion to those in need, and seeking the face of Jesus in everyone she met. Love of God is also love of truth. In many ways we dodge the truth about ourselves, refusing to shine the light of honesty on our lives, preferring to remain in denial about those moral shortcomings that keep us apart from God. Helen had a deep love for the truth, seeking to know herself better in relationship 154 Pillars of Fire in My Soul