Ave Maria!— August’s Theme: Spiritual Aridity
15- “Be certain that when you find yourself in aridity of spirit, Jesus has not excluded you from the enjoyment of His sweetness: He has only hidden Himself a little, so that you live of Him and for Him, and not ever for His sweetness; so that people who are afflicted find in you a compassionate and loving help; so that the Lord, from a dead and sacrificed heart, receives the pleasing odor of a holy holocaust.”
16- “Do not be troubled in whatever state of aridity you may find yourself to be. Let yourself be lovingly guided by Divine Providence, be it that He wants to make you walk by land and by deserts, be it by the waters of sensible and spiritual consolations. Keep your bouquet in your hand, but if some other delicious odor presents itself to you, do not neglect to smell it with gratitude, because the bouquet is there so as not to leave you for long without some comfort or spiritual pleasure.”
17- “You are right to lament […], because more often than not you find yourself in darkness: you search for your God, you long for Him, you call Him and do not find His footprints. It seems that God had hidden Himself, has abandoned you! But, I repeat, do not fear: Jesus is with you even then, as you are in Him and with Him. He conceals Himself; He hides Himself to always increase love. In darkness, in tribulations, in anxiety of spirit, Jesus is with you. You see nothing other than darkness in your spirit, and I assure you on God’s behalf, that the light of the Lord invades and surrounds your whole soul.”
