I took Jeremiah 7:13-29 as tonight’s reading. Through this my Father spoke clearly of His justice and mercy. When we sin and persist in our sins—ignoring His calls to repentance—His infinite justice requires that He withdraw Himself from us, taking with Him His protection and providence, both spiritual and temporal. We have abandoned Him, and He will not force Himself on us. However, His infinite mercy is such that at our first sign of turning back He is right there to begin anew the relationship.

As I absorbed this, I was once more in the situation of words with no meaning bursting through from deep within me. The tone of the words was that of a solemn declaration. I surrendered myself totally to my Father’s will in this.

Almost immediately, the words ceased, and I was called to the Prayer of Quiet. Usually, this means a close, loving, joyful communion with my Father. Tonight, however, there was something serious going on. I felt that I was required to be very quiet and very still. I was given the brief imagery of a surgeon at work. I’ve undergone medical procedures where I had to lie still and quiet while I was worked on, and so I realized that my Father was “working on” something deep within me to heal me. (1)

I stayed this way for a very long time. Then, I had a keen awareness of a group of people praying the rosary. There was a great determination in their prayers. They were waging a spiritual battle of great importance to them. The force of their determination compelled me to join them, and their determination became my own. I found myself using the Hail Marys as a weapon on their behalf and felt something happen inside me. Something opened up, and something flowed out of me. I experienced the power of the God-within-me (2) joining the power of the God-within-them, and thus united, our end was accomplished, whatever it was.

This was undoubtedly the most awesome experience I have ever had. Tonight, in this great Armageddon we live, a victory was won somewhere. And, (this is almost unbelievable) out of all His servants, my Father chose me to be one of the deciding factors. My surrender to the God-within-me made a difference. I’m absolutely numb from the reality of this. There is only a certainty, deep within me, that I participated in a miracle. (3) That’s too much for me to comprehend right now.

(1) Spiritual director: Hope He will do this a lot from now on.

(2) Current comment: This is a reference to the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

(3) Spiritual director: Yes.