Meditation in the desert.
FIFTH DAY, EXERCISE I.
Meditation on Our Lord in the Desert
Jesus alone in the desert with beasts and
Satan. Solitude, fast, and prayer are the prepara
tions which our Lord makes against temptation.
He wishes to set us the example, and to show us
that it is against the just and unworldly man that
the devil looses himself with more fury and tenacity
of purpose. Solitude, fast, and prayer, there
indeed is the life of Carmel. Oh ! Sisters, be
faithful unto it. Prayer above all things, and con
stant prayer, is the preparation which our Lord
expects of you in everything that He wishes to do
with you, or by you. It is the better preparation;
it is the action of the Holy Ghost on the soul. But
do not forget that the soul in solitude is liable to
temptation. So it will be for you in the silence of
your solitude, in your desert. But courage, fear
not ; you are prepared for fighting, you shall be also
prepared for victory !
Secondly, Temptation. Let us contemplate
our Lord far removed from any human being in
a desert, in the midst of beasts. And the beasts
may well represent to us Satan, that fierce beast,
who dares to contemplate our Lord, to approach
His Admirable Person, and to offer Him bread, the
bread of corruption, Him, Who is the Glory of
the World, and the Benefactor of the Earth. But
this spectacle is given us to be our consolation and
strength ; for the things which Satan here offers
our Lord, the Holy of Holies, he will present to us
likewise. We shall be tempted by pride, tempted
by sensuality. Our Lord has vouchsafed to undergo
this humiliation in order to give us a lesson of
consolation, and an example to follow; and with
precept and example, we earn victory. With what
energy He repels the tempter ! He does not
reason with him, but says :”Get thee behind Me,
Satan, for it is written, Not in bread alone doth man
live, but in every word that proceedeth from the mouth
of God” O fundamental and encouraging words,
which reveal to us the basis and the structure of our
faith ! It is written in the Book of Truth Whom I
ought to adore, Whom I ought to love, what I ought
to do : therefore, I do not reason with the Spirit of
Lies, but I believe. It is written that we shall be
never tempted beyond our strength ; this is an article
of faith, which we must believe. Whatever temp
tation we experience, we shall have victory always,
if we ask for it ; for God is faithful, He never
abandons a soul, and in solitude above all He is
with her, and fights with her and on her behalf.
So you too, Sisters, blessing Him, loving Him, and
adoring Him, must also endeavour in your solitude
to fight with your good Master, and Satan shall be
conquered. It is true he goes only for a time, he
will return, but always to be conquered !
Thirdly, Consolation. Satan withdraws to a
distance, and angels take his place. Observe,
Sisters, it is after prolonged solitude in the desert
in the midst of beasts, after a threefold temptation,
that our Lord calls angels unto Him. Such is the
law, whatever God reserves to us, pain, suffering,
temptation ; whatever happens to our soul, there is
the compensation on the part of God; so it is
always, always. Angels shall be sent to minister to
this tried, though faithful, soul ; because God is the
God of all consolation, and He tries the soul by
temptation; after the conflict He hearkens to the
afflicted soul with the riches and pleasures of His
magnificence.
And angels ministered unto Him, and set before
Him a feast. And a feast is set before us likewise ;
a feast which brings us heavenly joy, the feast of
the Blessed Eucharist, a divine repast served by
angels; this is our strength, our life, divine strength,
divine life, and against which Satan can do nothing.
But we know well that this Bread of the Strong was
given us here below only to excite us still to con
flict, and to assure us of victory with God always.
Consolation bespeaks trial ; temptation will then
return. But at length life will come to a close, and
then what joys after the trial ! What ineffable
happiness ! Come, Sisters, we must be brave.
Let us pray to our Lord to obtain courage ; let us
pray without ceasing until we come face to face with
God and His angels in heaven.
Image above: Ivan Kramskoj - Christ in the desest
I often think of how Jesus, who was without sin, often withdrew from the world, into the desert or some other isolated and lonely place so that he could pray and be close to His Father….how much more then do I, a sinner need those times of silence and withdrawal so as to be close to God and in the silence to listen to his gentle voice, always filled with love and wisdom.
Comment by Ann — October 30, 2007 @ 3:34 pm