A Cross that is Sweet

Many of you probably have read this article , but, I really wanted to pull out this part:

“The truth is that this cross – if you embrace it with Christ – ceases to be as ugly as it looks. If you trust in him, you discover that this fire, this cross, does not burn, and that peace can be found in suffering and joy in death,” said Enrico, according to CNA. “I spent a lot of time this year reflecting on this phrase from the Gospel that says the Lord gives a cross that is sweet and a burden that is light.

“When I would look at Chiara when she was about to die, I obviously became very upset. But I mustered the courage and a few hours before – it was about eight in the morning, Chiara died at noon – I asked her. 

“I said: ‘But Chiara, my love, is this cross really sweet, like the Lord says? She looked at me and she smiled, and in a soft voice she said, ‘Yes, Enrico, it is very sweet.’

“In this sense, the entire family didn’t see Chiara die peacefully, but happily, which is totally different.”

God gives a cross that is sweet. Not tolerable or bearable but sweet! So when this young woman died she wasn't just content in her sufferings she was happy! And as her husband,Enrico, pointed out it "...is totally different."

This point is also expressed so beautifully in this quote:

"The Everlasting God has in His wisdom foreseen from eternity the cross He now presents to you as a gift from His inmost Heart. This cross He now sends you He has considered with His all-knowing eyes, understood with His divine mind, tested with His wise justice, warmed with His loving arms and weighed with His own hands, to see that it be not one ounce to heavy for you. He has blessed it with His Holy Name, anointed it with His grace, perfumed it with His consolation, taken one last glance at you and your courage, and then sent it to you from Heaven, a special greeting from God to you, an alms of the all-merciful love of God."

I was reading through old letters from my best friend last night and he had quoted that in one letter; I almost cried. I have been struggling with a few things lately and this quote just shook me. "This is not just a test" I realized "is is a gift given with the deepest of loves. Despite my feelings, I am loved. It's going to be alright." Even as I typed that "I am loved" I felt something recoiling within me "No, it can't be true! It's a lie and will only end in pain." *sigh* the devil is such a jerk (to put it nicely :P ) he will do anything to keep me from God.