I pray that you may have the power to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Ephesians 3:18-19
“Make me worthy, O uncreated God, to know the depth of Your love and Your most ardent charity. Make me worthy of understanding the ineffable charity You communicated to us when you showed us Your Son Jesus Christ in the incarnation, and when He, Your Son, manifested You, the Father, to us. O admirable and joyous love! In truth, in You, is to be found all that is pleasant, agreeable, and delightful. This is the contemplation which elevates the soul from the world, lifts it above itself, and brings it peace and tranquility.”
Angela of Foligno (c.1248-1309) in “The Instructions” in Angela of Foligno: Complete Works translated by Paul Lachance (Classics of Western Spirituality; Mahwah: Paulist Press, 1993) 310.
If you are weary in studying what contemplative followers of Christ had to say about living a life of generosity, please hang with me another week or so. There is much wisdom in their words.
For example, consider how today’s meditation (a personal prayer to God) echoes the Apostle Paul’s prayer for us. Once we realize how faithfully and God loves us, it transforms our relationship to the world and everything in it.
I am doing some contemplation that elevates the soul this week.
I’m fly fishing for few days with my son, Sammy, in Western Colorado, Utah, and Nevada. That means we tend to eat breakfast, enjoy the outdoors all day, and then eat dinner in the evening. During the day is when I experience delight.
It might be in the majesty of God’s creation (pictured above from our hike today), the beauty of a trout, or in the wonder of a wildflower. God’s behind all of it. He’s holding everything together. He loves me, and holds me together, which is why I can trust him in all things. Even with the aching back I seem to have this week.
Take time to contemplate on the depths of God’s love today!
If you don’t take time to contemplate, then you will not comprehend the depth of God’s charity, and you will be far more hesitant to be generous because you will not be lifted from the world and its way of thinking. Try it, it’s delightful!