
The other day, I read this passage from one of St. Therese of Lisieux‘s letters, in Jacques Philippe’s The Way of Trust and Love:
“[A child who has sinned] throws himself into his father’s arms, telling him that he is sorry to have hurt him, that he loves him, and that he will prove it by being good from now on… Then, if that child asks his father to punish him with a kiss, I don’t think the happy father could harden his heart against his child’s filial trust, knowing his sincerity and love.”
St. Therese is saying that when we sin, we should trust God so much as to ask Him to bless us in lieu of punishment.
Does this astonish you? It did me. Human nature says that when we sin, we should run away from God like Adam did. We expect God to reject us, even when we do come to Him in repentance.
Be daring in your trust
But Therese is bold, “daring” as she herself said. She asked for a kiss from God whenever she sinned. And she became “the greatest saint of modern times,” according to Pope Pius X!
You might be thinking, “Yeah, but Therese’s sins weren’t like mine. She only committed tiny venial sins, while I…” (You name it.) You’re right. Your sins probably are worse than hers. So are mine. But if you are a Christian, your God is exactly the same as hers was. And that’s the whole point.
Our sins don’t change God
Do we expect to earn Heaven by being good, or be rewarded with what we don’t deserve? If you despair because you have sinned, or you think that you have no call to trust God as much as Therese did, think again. The penitent woman in the Gospel loved much, because she had been forgiven much. She was bold in her trust and love too. Jesus did not turn her away. He defended her against her detractors. (See Luke 7:36-50.) Some say she went on to become St. Mary Magdalen.
We must trust God, not because we are good, but because He is. Therese was fond of saying that God would always meet our expectations. The more we trust Him, the more He will prove Himself trustworthy. Our sins are not too big for God. Our trust is too little.
Of course, we cannot be presumptuous, only pretending to be repentant without resolving to do better in the future. Presumption can be a mortal sin. It won’t win us a kiss from God. But neither should we despair, no matter what we have done, no matter how many times we have fallen. Our sins do not change God.
Join me in trusting God more
Since reading this passage of St. Therese’s, I have started asking God for a kiss as my punishment, an increase of grace and closeness to Him every time I sin. I ask Him to draw me even closer than I would have been if I had withstood temptation. Will you join me in being as daring as St. Therese?
Start by going to Confession, especially if you’ve committed any mortal sins. Then trust Him. You wouldn’t refuse to kiss your child when he was sorry for being naughty, would you? Nor will God refuse to bestow His love and grace on you.
Connie Rossini
Share with us: Do you find it hard to trust in God’s mercy? How are you working on this? What other sayings or practices of the saints astonish you with their boldness?
This is linked to Catholic Bloggers Network Monthly Roundup.
Nancy
This is wonderful. I’m going to spend some prayer time with it, right here, right now. I love your blog.
Connie Rossini
Prayer is the right response. It’s all about Jesus. Help me spread the word about my blog. Thanks.
Nancy
That’s why I like your blog… it’s all about Jesus! I’ve already put a link to it on my “social” blog, TheBreadboxLetters.blogspot.com.
Connie Rossini
That must be why I’m getting so many views today! Thanks again.
You can’t lose, unless you give up | Contemplative Homeschool
[…] here’s the interesting part. I started this year trying to trust God radically when I sin. I have practiced being peaceful when I fail. I no longer beat myself up. I’m no […]
Becca
great post! definitely something I need to hear all the time.
Connie Rossini
Thanks for commenting, Becca. I’m still working on trust daily. It’s an inspiration and a challenge.
Trusting God with your future | Contemplative Homeschool
[…] with my reading The Way of Trust and Love by Jacques Philippe. You can read my original post on St. Therese’s trust here. (I know I link to this post a lot, but that’s because I consider it among my best. Trust […]
My original posts on trust - Contemplative Homeschool
[…] St. Therese’s astonishing trust in God […]
Abbey
Jesus to St Faustina: After a fall, we should throw ourselves upon His mercy. In doing so, we will gain more than we would have had we not fallen. (I’d look up the exact quote but I’m in a hurry.) Found your site from rcspiritualdirection. I have a great devotion to St Therese, as did my son who passed away last October at age 12. I love to learn more about her. Hopefully I can share what she did for us at some point!
Connie Rossini
Abbey, I’m so sorry for your loss. It sounds like your son was in great hands. I would love to hear more of your story.
I had forgotten that St. Faustina says basically the same thing as St. Therese, but it shouldn’t surprise me. It’s funny how I must have read that a couple of times at least, and I’m sure it really moved me at the time. But still I didn’t change and I even forgot it! That’s exactly what I was talking about in my post at SpiritualDirection.com. I had to really focus intently on trust, and figure out how to take inventory of the lack of trust in many different areas of my life, before the change came. Now it is finally here, praise God! But I still have lots of growing to do in trust nonetheless.
enrique rivera
Some of the most amazing and encouraging words Ive heard as a Christian. I love St. Therese. She has provided an amazing vehicle of Grace for me to grow in faith and sainthood.
Dora J Donovan
My trust is growing too! I read this exact passage 2 days ago. Jesus I trust in You!
Connie Rossini
God is good! God bless.