If My Suffering Satiates Your Thirst

I recently read Mother Teresa: Come Be My Light. Shared a few thoughts from it last week, this will be my last one. (Just in case you’re getting tired of the Mother Teresa theme on this blog.) (Hah, that’s a totally unexpected and funny sentence.)

One of the reasons I read the book is because I had heard about how Mother Teresa, despite very acutely feeling God’s presence and hearing the voice of Jesus early in her life and ministry, she then went years without sensing God’s nearness or love.

The cool thing is that even though, for her, it was the most painful way form of suffering she could imagine, she kept a God-centric view of it, and tried to view even this pain as a gift. Here are a few quotes:

“Love demands sacrifice. But if we love until it hurts, God will give us peace and joy. … Suffering in itself is nothing; but suffering shared with Christ’s Passion is a wonderful gift.”

“No, I don’t complain – let Him do with me whatever He wants.” 

“If this brings You glory, if You get a drop of joy from this – if souls are brought to You – if my suffering satiates Your Thirst – here I am Lord, with joy I accept all to the end of life – I will smile at Your hidden face.”