Be Brave in Me

                “Dear brave merciful Lord, as I gaze upon the Cross, my soul trembles in fear and yet, oddly, it also finds peace. You were nailed to the Cross by the people You created and yet You knew and accepted that that was the only way to save all humanity. You are so brave. How could You continue on Your journey to Jerusalem knowing what awaited You? The Cross, such an awful instrument of torture, stood looming in front of You and yet You continued to step towards it, to embrace it. I see the Cross and stare at the nails and cry out in fear and horror. How did You endure the Cross?”

                “My dear trembling child, I too was afraid. I sweat drops of blood the night before. I begged My closest friends to stay awake with Me but even they couldn’t remain with Me. Only My Father knew what I needed to do and only My Father knew how to comfort Me and how to strengthen Me at that moment. The angel He sent Me gave Me great comfort but it was His love for Me and My love for Him that truly helped Me.

                “That is My hope for all mankind, that in everyone’s hour of need, they will draw upon My love for them and the knowledge that whatever trial they must endure has been sent by My Father for a greater purpose. Look what came out of My suffering on the Cross - more than anyone could have imagined at the time!

                “I want everyone to trust in Me and in My love. That is the only thing that can truly help an individual to endure and persevere in the face of a great trial. Only My love can strengthen My beloved people and only through faith in Me and in My love can people be brave enough to endure the cross they must bear.

                “Dear trembling child, tremble no more. Give Me your heart and I will give you all you need. Be brave in Me.”

Melting into You

                “Oh my dear merciful, saving Lord, my soul cries out to You. As the priest breaks the large host into pieces for Holy Communion, I see You at the pillar being scourged. I hear the crack of the instruments of torture upon Your precious body for our salvation with every snap of the host being broken into pieces for our consumption. Oh Lord, I squeeze my eyes shut in horror at the parallel image before my eyes and ears.

                “As the priest carries the ciborium to the front of the altar, I see the broken pieces of Your body being distributed to each person. I see You hanging on the Cross, each drop of Your precious blood falling to the ground for every one of us. Bit by bit, Your precious body is broken and given to each person. Lord, I pray that everyone who receives Your precious body and blood will melt into You as You melt into them through the Eucharist, the holy bread that feeds us all. May their souls melt into You, joining all of us together into one holy body, with You as the head.

                “Oh dear merciful, saving Lord, Your deep love for all of us places You on the Cross every hour of every day throughout the world in every Mass we celebrate. Your body and blood is broken and shed continually for all of us, in the past, the present and in the future. Oh dear merciful, saving Lord, I pray that people everywhere will participate in the Mass and receive Your precious body and blood in Communion, thus joining us all together, one body, one holy Church. May the love we hold in our hearts for You help to join the broken pieces of Your body together, melted with us, healed and made whole at every Mass. Oh dear Lord, my soul cries out to be one with You.”