Daily Inspiration

Jesus said to his disciples, "Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. What profit would there be for one to gain the whole world and forfeit his life? Or what can one give in exchange for his life? For the Son of Man will come with his angels in his Father's glory, and then he will repay each according to his conduct. Amen, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in his Kingdom." -Matthew 16:24-28

I often hear Christians claim that there is no reason to suffer and that God wants us only to be happy, but that belief is only partially true. God knows we are happiest when we are closest to Him. But suffering is a part of every life, because we are fallen, and removed from the Garden due to sin, suffering is inevitable for us all. Jesus didn’t say, “Hey, no need to suffer, I’m going to do that for you.” Rather, He told us that we must abandon our self-love, and look at our cross as He did, as a tool of salvation. If only we understood, that at the Gates of Heaven, there are scattered about, countless worn-out crosses that were carried to victory, we would find that true happiness comes from giving our life to Christ and carrying our cross with Him.

Saint Clare of Assisi, pray for us.

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Jesus, I trust in you!