Ugly Made Beautiful

I don't know what happened to me today. I woke up. Everything seemed to be normal. I was working on some watercolor projects, enjoying my work. And then someone said something, I went from 0 to 100% irritated. The crazy part is that they didn't even say anything irritating! (Obviously, there was nothing rational about any of this.) Regardless, from that point on, I felt like I woke up on the wrong side of the bed. I tried to make the best of it by saying nothing (ya know, "if you can't say anything nice..."), but inwardly I still felt so irritable. The worst part was that it was right before I went to mass.

The whole ride there, and the beginning of mass, I was struggling with this feeling. Trying not to be ruled by it, trying not to let it influence my whole day. Trying to figure out where it was coming from so that I could resolve whatever was going on. My brain was working overtime trying to 'fix' it. But then I saw the crucifix next to the altar. Outside of the context of Christianity, crucifixion is terrifyingly hideous... an instrument of torture and of fear. Yet, Jesus made THAT beautiful. When I look at a crucifix, I'm not afraid. I don't feel disgusted, or revolted. It's not hideous, because I know that He died for me. And for you! He made it beautiful through His sacrifice.

If He can take something so gruesome and make it beautiful, why couldn't He transform me? My irritability, distrust, bad temper, fear, pride... my sin? ... So, I decided to give Him my 'ugly.' As the priest was preparing the gifts, I prepared my gift. I said something like, "Lord, this is all I have, but I know you can make it beautiful."

It didn't feel awesome. I felt like I was giving Him a piece of garbage. But this is the beauty of Mercy! How often did Jesus say in His earthly ministry, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”? He cured the lame, the blind, the suffering, and brought the dead to life through the faith of those who trusted Him. Did they bring Jesus gifts of gold for this to happen? No! But they brought their trust. Without that trust, Jesus is rendered powerless. Think of His visit to Nazareth, His own hometown:

""Is he not the carpenter, the son of Mary, and the brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him. Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his native place and among his own kin and in his own house.” So he was not able to perform any mighty deed there, apart from curing a few sick people by laying his hands on them.

He was amazed at their lack of faith." -Mark 6:5

God needs for us to allow Him to work in us, and He will change our lives. We have to be willing to trust Him. Thérèse of Lisieux's Little Way can be broken down like this: By recognizing that we are broken and little, persevering in our strive for holiness, and trusting that God will satisfy our desires for holiness, we allow God the space He needs to transform our hearts and our souls. We allow Him to make great saints out of us! This week's Corporal Work of Mercy is: Visit the Imprisoned... It's a wonder to me how often I imprison myself! When I doubt God's goodness for me, when I doubt His love for me, when I distrust His ability to conquer my sin, when I distrust His ability to make me a saint, when I allow myself to be overcome by discouragement, when I think I have to earn Heaven or His love, or when I think I have to do it alone...

All we need to say is:

"I give it all to You, God trusting that You’ll make something beautiful out of me."

Corporal Work of Mercy: Visit the imprisoned.

- Say a Litany of Trust.

- Help with a communion service or Mass at a prison.

- Donate bibles and/or spiritual reading materials to a prison.

- Visit Our Lord in Adoration and ask Him to help free you of whatever enslaves you.

- The sacrament of Confession is one full of healing and grace. Both of which, help us to be free of what enslaves us. Go to confession this week and participate in this amazing gift of God's Mercy.

- Pray through Mark 5:21-43. Ask Our Lord to increase your faith.

- A lot of times, nursing homes can feel like prison for those who live there. Visit the elderly this week and show them that they are loved and have dignity.

- See if you can go with a prayer group and a priest to pray with or talk with prisoners. You can show them they are loved and have dignity too.

- Offer a mass for the imprisoned here in America, but also for those who are imprisoned in other countries due to their faith.

Spiritual Work of Mercy: Comfort the sorrowful.

- Write a letter/ send a card to someone you know who is suffering or lonely.

- Call, or make a coffee date with, someone you know who might be lonely or in need of a friend.

- If you suffer from loneliness, try one new way to "reach out" to others. Text a friend, "I'm not sure what to ask for, but I don't want to be alone right now." or “I'm going through a tough time and I feel like you're someone I can trust. Are you free to talk (Day/Time)?"

- Think of one way you can bring joy to someone who's suffering. Make a date to get ice-cream (EVERYONE loves ice-cream). Or hide a note telling them how much they mean to you in their backpack, or bag. Or print out your favorite picture of them and share one of your favorite memories together.

- I know I said it up there, but spend time with the elderly. They often are sad, suffering, or alone. Be a ray of light to them. You don't have to be at a nursing home to smile or spark up a conversation with elderly people!

- Hand out flowers to people. (If you're on a college campus try to do this around test time.) It's super easy, and I bet it would brighten a people's day!