Treasure In The Desert
By: Eric Gajewski
It is that time again. It is time to follow Jesus out into the
desert. But how many people fail to
recognize the treasure which is buried out in the vast openness of seemingly nothing. The world mocks us for something that
seems to contradict all rationale. How
and what to find out in a place where the worldly avoid? We have a great opportunity this Lent to grow
in virtue and holiness yet this will not be accomplished without your friend...
the desert. It is a place where arid
prayers mayest be purified in so that the heart can eventually find the Spring
of Life Himself. It is hot and virtually
no life is to be found and for good reason.
Modern man has built up so many distractions and false securities around
him that now silence and solitude has become all but an afterthought. This Lent and in general (in the spiritual
life) you reap what you sow. Your feet
must follow the Savior’s in self-denial out into the desert if you ever have hopes
of achieving the Land flowing with milk and honey.
Christ laid down the blueprint. Christ gives us the model to follow. Just as we must follow in His Passion so too
must we follow Him out into the desert.
Christ, the Rest for our hearts knows the way and we do not, therefore,
we must trust in every step we take. We
are accompanied by the Wind which will speak to us from time to time (guiding
us in this journey). Let us stay a way
from the foolish argument that Christ has done ALL of these things so that we don’t
have too! I hear this often from the
heretics who think they are following Christ but are only following themselves.
This blueprint is simple. Silence and
solitude. Some of you will find it
difficult to be settle yourselves for even 30 minutes let alone the majority of
time. And still those who are married
are challenged as to how to get this accomplished but it must be done. Silence, in so that, we can begin to reach
out and hear God’s voice. Solitude, in
so that, we are not bothered by others in this process of attempting to find
Him. If you are always talking then how
can God be heard? If you are always
seeking the accompaniment of friends, then, how can you be alone with the
Friend, who stickest closest to you more than any brother? Remember, our God is s jealous God. If you are to be led down the path of perfection,
we must know, that, there is NO AVOIDING the desert.
Lenten Meditational Series:
Imitation of the Sacred Heart Part 1
ADMONITIONS USEFUL FOR PURIFYING THE HEART
We are tried and tested. In order to be loosened from self we must be
tested. How else will we know how much
we love God? Do you love him enough only
to stay in a state of grace for a few days then choose the world or your own
pleasure again? The battle with self is vicious. Do you keep Him on your lips
amidst friends but then alone you hide him away within and don’t pay Him any
attention? God wants you to be free of
all self love and thus He will permit the devil to tempt you as He was. Remember, our greatest enemy in the end is
self. For the devil can only tempt and
do no more. He cannot “decide” for yourself. You have your own will which he tries to keep
locked upon the self. There have been no
Saints who were not tempted. Christ was
tempted therefore you will be. Do not be
anxious over this reality. Wear your scapular
and pray the Rosary and be ready for the battle. It becomes all the more difficult at first
when we are fasting but as you know “we are the strongest when we are the
weakest”. When we are empty only then
can Christ fill us. Those who drag
themselves out into the desert simply because it is what Catholics do will
never find the treasure hidden therein.
Gloomy Fasters. Let us not keep the face of a Pharisee as we
are fasting. Fasting is one of the
fastest ways to appease God’s anger when we dive into Scripture. Who can argue that we ought not be going
above and beyond what the Church asks of us now? Yes, God will draw you "into the dark" at
different points in your life but even the closet of the Master is safe! Those seeking gain in the desert will only
choose to eventually leave. This is
about finding Christ alone and becoming more holy and virtuous in the
process. So prepare those fish
sandwiches and chew them with a smile. We
were truly meant to live on the Bread of Life.
Take a look at some of the mystics who survived on this Bread alone for
well over 5 years (Marie Julie & Bl. Emmerick to name a few) Some can’t go 6 hours without pounding
another round of taco bell. To be filled
with Christ is to be happy. What girlfriend
is not happy to be preparing for her Wedding Day? Should she be so gloomy because there is much
to do beforehand? Let us empty our
stomachs so that our hearts might be filled, no?
Treasure in the Desert. Where your treasure is there also is your
heart. Treasure in the Desert? Ah!
Having consistently persisted in the ways of silence and solitude and
fended off the attacks of the devil you find yourself growing in Selfless Love. This gift of the desert is meant to give you
Him alone. You will not find this
treasure buried in the busiest of cities.
Modern man stays on the surface moving from one distraction to the next
hardly ever going within. For this
reason God must send a “universal desert experience” to the Church. This is why God will chastise and begin to “strip
naked” all those worldly desires you have.
The poor Conciliarists who are following the New Religion do not see
this coming. They have been following
the worlds path via erroring churchmen.
We will be sent to the desert to wander for a “times” away from the
Antichrist that we might come out on the other end purified. If you look closely in this desert there is
no earthly water. But if you look with
the inward eyes of an eagle you will know that you are sustained by the Living
Water Who is right there with you. This
desert is seemingly unfriendly but it is all so that you can purify your
intentions to the most holy God alone.
In the end, it is either you have God or not. Thus, why do we try to keep God in our back
pocket walking along in worldly lives? Pretend
much? Over and over again in Scripture you will see
Christ “retreating” away. He is laying down
the blueprint for you all but some of you have 5 hours of TV to DVR tonight (so you can watch later) which
is much more important. After all we
have salvation through TV? Sharpen up
Soldier….lets get our priorities straight.