This was a dry, difficult prayer period. I went through a long series of texts (which I will repeat tomorrow), and my Father just wasn’t there. The texts said nothing to me, and, in fact, often made no sense at all. They, I believe, were not the object of today’s lesson. I believe my Father was acting in a hidden way. He gave me one insight at the very end of the prayer period.

The main reason that the texts made no sense to me was because I was distracted by fighting off sleep. It was a real struggle, and I failed even though I offered it in union with the Cross and asked for aid.

The insight that my Father gave me was that my sleep problems come in two varieties. The gentle sleep is a soothing thing that gives no warning. This is, in fact, no problem at all. I am in His presence, slide off gently, and am not even aware that I have dozed until I awake. When I do, He is still there. This is a gift of rest from Him.

The other sleep is a genuine problem, but a lesson-problem from my Father. Today’s lesson was in humility. He withheld His aid as a demonstration of how ineffective I am without Him. The lesson, as always, was very timely. Day before yesterday, I assumed that I knew His will in a situation, didn’t bother to consult Him, and ended up rather embarrassed because of my error in judgment last night. Between that and today’s lesson, I hope I have learned something of the ways of humility. I have asked His aid in getting myself out of the little mess I’ve gotten myself into, and to forgive my pride. I have also asked Mary to intercede for me, that I will do better in the future.

Oh, yes. I nearly forgot. I had planned to return to the question I had about why the lost sheep caused more joy than those that had remained faithful. My Father set me straight on that late last night. First, He made it clear that it wasn’t a matter of the faithful sheep causing no joy. Of course, Heaven rejoices over their faithfulness. The greater joy results from the lost sheep’s victory over further temptation. He also made it clear that the lost sheep is not better than the faithful sheep for having wandered, even though He may make good use of the experience. For instance, a former drug user who can use his personal experiences in effectively counseling teens is not holier than a person who had never used drugs. He is simply making reparation for his own sins.

Anyway, I will return to the texts I covered today in my next prayer period.