Judged By Love

Watch this video: 2015 Rosary Procession – St. Mary’s

And then maybe watch it a second time.

And then consider some of Fr. Beck’s words:

We also are meant to give light.  Light in the darkness of our world

And for that to happen, we must be consumed

We must sacrifice ourselves

We must invest ourselves

In answer to the request of Our Lady, and of Our Lord

We must be willing to be consumed.  For Our Lady, and Her Son, and the Cause of Christendom

The path is not an easy one.  The darkness grows deeper and deeper as we go further and further

Throughout we are meant to be a light

By our sacrifice

By the Charity that burns in our hearts

By our Love for Our Lady, and Her Son

more “Sacrifice”

For each of us and for everything, there is going to be, and maybe already has been, one last time for everything that means anything.

Forgive me if I come across a little morbid again.  I’m sitting in my empty house – my daughter boarding at the school, and my bride on a week long retreat, leaving me to consider the quiet, and I’m already missing her (it’s been two hours).

And then that thought came to me – there WILL be one last time.  One last day, and we don’t know when it will come.  And our lives go spinning on, and for the most part, we do our duty of state, pray and worry, not really considering this truth.

A long time ago, Melissa and I made a decision to always kiss each other good bye whenever one of us left the house.  It doesn’t matter if we’re leaving town, or running to the store.  I never want the last time to happen without a goodbye kiss.

But there’s so much more if you think about it.

We get into our daily lives and lose total sight that one of these days, that kiss, or touch, or embrace will be the last one we share with our spouse.

The love letter, or card, or some little gift just because will be the last one you receive, or give.

No, I don’t think we need to walk around in a state of panic that maybe it’s now, or now, or now.

But I, for one, don’t consider often enough that there will come a day, certainly sooner than I want, that this ‘one last time’ has happened.

The beginning of the week seems like a perfect time to take a minute or two and consider things like this.

Sunday is usually less hectic, at least for some part of it, and even if it’s for a few minutes at Mass, consider that maybe, perhaps, this week could be the last time we will be able to demonstrate love for our spouse, and choose to show love, and then do it sometime during the week

What if you knew that the next time you held or touched or loved your spouse it would be the last time?

I read a really great article on Mark Merrill’s blog a few years ago, and i just found a copy I printed then to remind me, so I thought it would be worth sharing.  By the way, if you don’t already read articles by Mark – you should!  His website is here:  www.markmerrill.com.  And his wife Susan has a blog directed to wives here:  www.imom.com.

As usual, he says a lot of important things – things for us to consider, and not just consider, but to actually act on and do.

Here’s an excerpt from him article:

The next time you are acting like a gentleman toward your wife, take a moment to reflect on what other ways you are demonstrating that same kind of care in your marriage, or maybe where you are missing it. Courtesy and chivalry do not make women inferior; if anything, they elevate women. They don’t say that women are incapable, they say that men are supposed to love selflessly. Being a chivalrous man will strengthen your marriage.

Read the whole article here:

Chivalry may not quite be dead, but it’s certainly on life support.

In His Sacred Heart,

Timothy