Jean-Pierre de Caussade: Give room for the operations of grace

But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them — yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. 1 Corinthians 15:10

“The peace of Jesus Christ be always with you.

You must know that before curing you of vanity God wills to make you feel all the ugliness of this accursed passion, and to convince you thoroughly of your powerlessness to cure it, so that all the glory of your cure should revert to Him alone. You have, then, in this matter, only two things to do.

Firstly, to examine peacefully this frightful interior ugliness. Secondly, to hope for and await in peace from God alone the moment fixed for your cure. You will never be at rest till you have learnt to distinguish what is from God from that which is your own; to separate what belongs to Him from what belongs to yourself.

You add, “How can you teach me this secret.”

You do not understand what you are saying. I can easily teach it to you in a moment, but you cannot learn to practice it until you have been made to feel, in peace, all your miseries. I say, in peace, to give room for the operations of grace.”

Jean-Pierre de Caussade in Abandonment to Divine Providence (Grand Rapids: CCEL, 1751) 206.

How powerful the idea – to need the cure of vanity and ugliness – and to admit that you and I are powerless to cure it. But we have hope, and that hope rests in God alone.

And how ironic to see where giving comes into view. We must “give room for the operations of grace.” Let’s take this counterintuitive and critical step as the new year begins.

The apostle Paul describe himself at working harder at this and yet experiencing transformed because of the grace of God at work in Him. May this same grace work in each of us as we “give room.”

Today I fly to Germany en route to India and Bangladesh where I will serve over the next 2 weeks. While I minister, my own examine work must continue.

I need God to help me distinguish what is from Him from that which is my own. I resolve to examine peacefully and hope for and wait for God to work in me (and you) one day at a time.

Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. Psalm 139:23-24

To “Know yourself” is good advice. But to know ourselves doesn’t mean to analyze ourselves. Sometimes we want to know ourselves as if we were machines that could be taken apart and put back together at will. At certain critical times in our lives it might be helpful to explore in some detail the events that led us to our crises, but we make a mistake when we think that we can ever completely understand ourselves and explain the full meaning of our lives to others. Solitude, silence, and prayer are often the best ways to self-knowledge. Not because they offer solutions for the complexity of our lives but because they bring us in touch with our sacred center, where God dwells. That sacred center may not be analyzed. It is the place of adoration, thanksgiving, and praise.

Henri Nouwen in Bread for the Journey (HarperCollins ebooks) reading for 22 March.

I needed to hear this. I sometimes approach the examine as analyzing myself, as Nouwen puts it, and miss the experience of knowing both myself and God in the process.

His exhortation that knowing comes from solitude, silence, and prayer is spot on. And David, the psalmist, shares the heart of the prayer in his words today.

As we start 2025, please make sure your examine includes this knowing that helps you connect with God and yourself in a deep way.

As Nouwen rightly concludes, “That sacred center may not be analyzed. It is the place of adoration, thanksgiving, and praise.”

Our generosity and service then flows out of such a space of worship.

The fire must be kept burning on the altar continuously; it must not go out. Leviticus 6:13

“Keep the altar of private prayer burning. This is the very life of all piety. The sanctuary and family altars borrow their fires here, therefore let this burn well. Secret devotion is the very essence, evidence, and barometer, of vital and experimental religion. Burn here the fat of your sacrifices. Let your closet seasons be, if possible, regular, frequent, and undisturbed. Effectual prayer availeth much. Have you nothing to pray for? Let us suggest the Church, the ministry, your own soul, your children, your relations, your neighbors, your country, and the cause of God and truth throughout the world.

Let us examine ourselves on this important matter. Do we engage with lukewarmness in private devotion? Is the fire of devotion burning dimly in our hearts? Do the chariot wheels drag heavily? If so, let us be alarmed at this sign of decay. Let us go with weeping, and ask for the Spirit of grace and of supplications. Let us set apart special seasons for extraordinary prayer. For if this fire should be smothered beneath the ashes of a worldly conformity, it will dim the fire on the family altar, and lessen our influence both in the Church and in the world.

The text will also apply to the altar of the heart. This is a golden altar indeed. God loves to see the hearts of His people glowing towards Himself. Let us give to God our hearts, all blazing with love, and seek His grace, that the fire may never be quenched; for it will not burn if the Lord does not keep it burning. Many foes will attempt to extinguish it; but if the unseen hand behind the wall pour thereon the sacred oil, it will blaze higher and higher. Let us use texts of Scripture as fuel for our heart’s fire, they are live coals; let us attend sermons, but above all, let us be much alone with Jesus.”

Charles Haddon Spurgeon in Morning and Evening: Daily Readings (Grand Rapids: CCEL) morning reading for for 15 July.

How do we avoid lukewarmness in our faith? How do we avoid worldly conformity in our generosity? How do we abide in the love and grace of God? How do we keep the fire burning on the altar of our hearts? Secret devotion and special seasons.

Prioritize secret devotion. Set apart time to be “much alone” with Jesus. Make it more important than anything else in your daily rhythms. More importantly than your spouse, your family, your work, or anything else.

Not spouse first, family first, work first, or anything else first. Make it God first.

Get this out of order and you will will not right love and serve your spouse, your family, your work, or anything else. Because your love and service will not flow from a vibrant relationship with God.

Beyond that, map out “special season” as Spurgeon put it to stoke the fires of your heart.

Perhaps this exploration of “examine” marks a special season for you. It is doing that for me. I find myself asking the Lord to show me my sins and root them out and to reveal to me my disordered attachments and reorder them.

This effort leaves me not weaker but stronger. The inward journey prepares me for outward service. What about you?

For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are — yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. Hebrews 4:15-16

“When we enter upon the spiritual we should consider, and examine to the bottom, what we are. And then we should find ourselves worthy of all contempt, and such as do not deserve the name of Christians, subject to all kinds of misery, and numberless accidents, which trouble us, and cause perpetual vicissitudes in our health, in our humors, in our internal and external dispositions: in fine, persons whom God would humble by many pains and labors, as well within as without. After this, we should not wonder that troubles, temptations, oppositions and contradictions, happen to us from men. We ought, on the contrary, to submit ourselves to them, and bear them as long as God pleases, as things highly advantageous to us. That the greater perfection a soul aspires after, the more dependent it is upon divine grace.”

Brother Lawrence (1605-1691) in The Practice of the Presence of God: The Best Rule of Holy Life (London: Epworth Press) 8.

When we look at the idea of examine in the thinking one of the greatest Christian writings of all time, we realize we don’t deserve the label ‘Christian’ and become, more than ever, dependent on divine grace.

We also discover that the only right way to navigate the troubles, temptations, oppositions and contradictions of life is to face them, embrace them, and as Brother Lawrence says, submit ourselves to them and bear them as long as God desires.

I had a great but brief visit to see my parents. Their days are numbered, but they are in a good place for now. When you think about it, days are numbered for all of us. Only those who pause to examine themselves, will make the most of them. Will you?

Now if your countryman becomes destitute and cannot support himself among you, then you are to help him as you would a foreigner or stranger, so that he can continue to live among you. Leviticus 25:35

“This duty is absolutely commanded, and much insisted on, in the Word of God. Where have we any command in the Bible laid down in stronger terms, and in a more peremptory urgent manner, than the command of giving to the poor? We have the same law in a positive manner laid down in Leviticus 25:35. . .

It is mentioned in Scripture, not only as a duty, but a great duty. Indeed it is generally acknowledged to be a duty, to be kind to the needy. But by many it seems not to be looked upon as a duty of great importance. However, it is mentioned in Scripture as one of the greater and more essential duties. . .

It is most reasonable, considering the general state and nature of mankind. This is such as renders it most reasonable that we should love our neighbor as ourselves; for men are made in the image of our God, and on this account are worthy of our love.

A selfish spirit is very unsuitable to the nature and state of mankind. He who is all for himself, and none for his neighbors, deserves to be cut off from the benefit of human society, and to be turned out among wild beasts, to subsist by himself as well as he can. A private niggardly spirit is more suitable for wolves, and other beasts of prey, than for human beings.

To love our neighbor as ourselves is the sum of the moral law respecting our fellow creatures. And to help them, and to contribute to their relief is the most natural expression of this love. It is vain to pretend to a spirit of love to our neighbors, when it is grievous to us to part with anything for their help, when under calamity. . .

Apply these things to yourselves. And inquire whether you do not lie under guilt on account of the neglect of this duty, in withholding that charity which God requires of you towards the needy? You have often been put upon examining yourselves, whether you do not live in some way displeasing to God.”

Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758) in “Of the obligation of Christians to perform the duty of charity to the poor” in Christian Charity or The Duty of Charity to the Poor, Explained and Enforced (1732).

Visiting my parents has me thinking about my own duty as a son to care for my parents. It also makes me think of the larger duty we all have as disciples of Jesus to those needing help. A key to discerning our duty can be found in the word ‘destitute’ in today’s Scripture.

God does not want us to give handouts that create dependency. He wants us to give a hand up to those who need it, when they need it. Notice in the text, the person cannot make it on their own. They need some help. We might say in modern terms, they need a helping hand.

Notice that Edwards, who never minces his words (or never speaks indirectly), calls the person who does not do this duty as possessing a “private niggardly spirit” that is “more suitable for wolves, and other beasts of prey, than for human beings.” Examine your heart along those lines.

At the end of the proverbial day, God sees and knows all. Our job is not to go with the flow as the flow of culture will move us toward that selfish spirit and stinginess and away from Christian duty and caring. With Edwards, let us examine ourselves and do our duty in 2025.

“I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear.” John 16:12

The Voice of Christ

My child, it is necessary for you to learn many things which you have not yet learned well.

The Disciple

What are they, Lord?

The Voice of Christ

That you conform your desires entirely according to My good pleasure, and be not a lover of self but an earnest doer of My will. Desires very often inflame you and drive you madly on, but consider whether you act for My honor, or for your own advantage. If I am the cause, you will be well content with whatever I ordain. If, on the other hand, any self-seeking lurk in you, it troubles you and weighs you down.

Take care, then, that you do not rely too much on preconceived desire that has no reference to Me, lest you repent later on and be displeased with what at first pleased you and which you desired as being for the best. Not every desire which seems good should be followed immediately, nor, on the other hand, should every contrary affection be at once rejected.

It is sometimes well to use a little restraint even in good desires and inclinations, lest through too much eagerness you bring upon yourself distraction of mind; lest through your lack of discipline you create scandal for others; or lest you be suddenly upset and fall because of resistance from others. Sometimes, however, you must use violence and resist your sensual appetite bravely.

You must pay no attention to what the flesh does or does not desire, taking pains that it be subjected, even by force, to the spirit. And it should be chastised and forced to remain in subjection until it is prepared for anything and is taught to be satisfied with little, to take pleasure in simple things, and not to murmur against inconveniences.”

Thomas à Kempis (1380-1471) in “The Longings of our Hearts must be Examined and Moderated” in The Imitation of Christ.

I took a quick trip to Florida from 1-4 January 2025 to start the year by spending some quality time with my parents, who are doing remarkably well for almost 86 and 84 years of again. In many ways I am examining their situation at Genesis Point in Lake Wales in authentic conversations with them how to best serve them in 2025.

God showed up at dinner last night in a powerful way. Someone in the restaurant, for some reason, felt led of God to pay our dinner tab. We don’t know if it was a person in the next booth who heard our conversation or what, but we sensed that it was God telling us not to worry about expenses related to this strategic time together.

Turning to today’s post, if we read the Gospel of John, by the time we get to chapter 16, from whence I pulled today’s Scripture, we see Jesus alerting the disciples to troubles that would come and exhorting them not to fall away. They could be of good cheer (and we can too) because Jesus has overcome the world.

And Jesus told them that He had more to say to them but it was more than they could bear, so He promised to send the Holy Spirit. It is the Spirit that helps us mortify or put to death the desires of the flesh. Then, I continued my focus on the word “examine” in the thinking of Thomas à Kempis.

I loved this imaginative interchange with Christ. Basically Thomas writes that we need to watch what we desire because our desires can destroy us. For example, if I desire too many cookies, and follow after that desire, I can destroy my health. If I desire to much of anything, it can have the adverse affect. It can go from good to not good.

And I love how Thomas concluded this conversation with Christ. “Be satisfied with little.” Amen to that. “Take pleasure in simple things.” If we don’t we miss the best of life. “And not to murmur against inconveniences.” God help me with that one as I start the year. Join me. And I think this disciplined way will help us live, give, serve, and love more generously.

For if you are living in accord with the flesh, you are going to die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live. Romans 8:13

“Does Christianity encourage morbid introspection? The alternative is much more morbid. Those who do not think about their own sins make up for it by thinking incessantly about the sins of others. It is healthier to think of one’s own. It is the reverse of morbid. It is not even, in the long run, very gloomy.

A serious attempt to repent and really to know one’s own sins is in the long run a lightening and relieving process. Of course, there is bound to be a first dismay and often terror and later great pain, yet that is much less in the long run than the anguish of a mass of unrepented and unexamined sins, lurking in the background of our minds.

It is the difference between the pain of the tooth about which you should go to the dentist, and the simple straight-forward pain which you know is getting less and less every moment when you have had the tooth out.”

C.S. Lewis (1898-1963) in his essay, “Miserable Offenders,” in God in the Dock: Essays on Theology and Ethics, edited by Walter Hooper (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1970) 97.

Happy New Year. My word for 2025 is “examine” and I chose to start this study by going to the writings of my favorite professor of the modern era, C.S. Lewis, to get his thoughts on the topic.

As always, Lewis does not disappoint.

He teaches us that the distinctly Christian work of putting to death the deeds of the flesh through introspection may sound morbid, but the alternative is even more dreadful.

Think about it. If we want to grow in living, giving, serving, and loving generously, we must look honestly at our lives, and as Lewis puts it, really know our own sins and repent.

I ended 2024 by getting a physical. I went to the good doctor Chris Courtney. He’s been a trusted friend for 25 years. I went not because I was sick, but because I want to stay healthy.

I want to be the best possible person physically and spiritually. As Lewis says, the pain will be “much less in the long run than the anguish of a mass of unrepented and unexamined sins.” Join me in the journey of examine this year.

Chris ran blood work to see if I have any issues there but recommended a hearing test and a colonoscopy in 2025. I will plan these tests when not traveling. Today I head to Florida for 3 days.

I will examine my parent’s situation. Examine relates not just to me by my relationships.

God help us examine our ways, return to you in 2025 and be our best possible selves as vessels made ready for service to you. Do this by your Holy Spirit I ask in the name of Jesus. Amen.

And praise God, GTP reached 100 monthly givers by the yesterday. Now we can submit that major grant. I’ll work on edits to that request to hire 2-3 more people on my flights this week.

“I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to His temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come,” says the LORD Almighty. Malachi 3:1

“The divine light always inheres in angelic light, and the angelic light would be irksome and insipid to the soul if God’s light were not enwrapped in it. God wraps and conceals Himself in the angelic light and is only waiting for a chance to creep out and give Himself to the soul.”

Meister Eckhart (c.1260-c.1328) in Sermon 48 in The Complete Mystical Works of Meister Eckhart, Translated and Edited by Maurice O’C. Walshe, Revised with a Foreword by Bernard McGinn (New York: Herder and Herder, 2009) 258.

We can give ourself generously to others because we serve a God who waits “for a chance to creep out and give Himself to the soul.” Let us celebrate His light and love as 2024 ends.

If you want a free devotional to start the year, download a free PDF copy of my most recent work entitled, Waiting, here.

Waiting explores the topic through the lens of various men and women in Scripture whose stories were shaped by waiting and whose examples inspire our own living, giving, serving, and loving.

Let us examine our ways and test them, and let us return to the LORD. Lamentations 3:40

“Let each one examine himself [or herself] to see what he [or she] has done up to now and what more he [or she] ought to accomplish. It is not enough to cite general principles, make resolutions, condemn grace injustices, make denunciations with a certain prophetic daring. None of this will carry any weight unless accompanied in each person by a more lively realization of his [or her] own responsibility and by effective action. It is too easy to make other people responsible for today’s injustices, if, at the same time, we don’t realize that we too are responsible and that a personal conversion is therefore the first necessity.”

Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini in Octogesima Adveniens, Letter dated 14 May 1971.

I think this will be my word for 2025: examine.

We can trace the spiritual practice of “the examen” back to Ignatius of Loyola (1491-1556). It has five steps.

1. Become aware of God’s presence.
2. Review the day with gratitude.
3. Pay attention to your emotions.
4. Choose one feature of the day and pray from it.
5. Look toward tomorrow.

I think this will fuel my generosity as it will increase the gratitude in my life and help me attend to my emotions better.

Today Montini teaches us that if we examine ourselves it will lead to a “more lively realization” of our own responsibilities.

That change that starts in each of us grows as others embrace it, which leads to change in our contexts. Rather than point fingers we pray and fast.

We become like Ezra and Nehemiah who rebuilt their people through prayer and fasting. I am excited for what God has in store for 2025.

It needs to start within me (and you too if you so decide). Examine.

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. John 10:10

“The Child we have been contemplating in the crib during the last few days is the Redeemer of the world and of everyone in it. He has come in the first place to give us eternal life as something to be looked forward to in this life and to be fully possessed after death. He has become a man to call sinners, to save what was lost, and to make divine life known to all men.

During the years of His public life, our Lord had little to say about the political and social situation of His people, and this in spite of their oppression by the Romans. On different occasions He makes it clear that He does not want to be a political Messiah nor a liberator from the yoke of Rome. He came to give us the freedom of the sons of God: freedom from the sins we had committed, which had reduced us to a state of slavery.

He came to give us freedom from eternal death, another consequence of sin: freedom from the dominion of the devil, since man could now overcome sin with the help of grace. And finally, He gave us freedom from life according to the flesh, which is opposed to supernatural life: the freedom bought by Christ through the Holy Spirit, has restored to us the capacity, of which sin had deprived us, of loving God above all and of remaining in contact with Him.”

Alessandro Farnese (1468-1549) in The Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (SCDF) as recounted in Instruction on Christian Freedom and Liberation, 53 (22 March 1986).

We must contemplate the generosity of Jesus as we think about what we will give ourselves to in 2025.

Look closely. He did not give Himself to political agendas. He did not fight for justice or social change. He did not seek to liberate His people from Roman oppression.

He had a bigger agenda. He wants us to have a bigger agenda as we move toward 2025.

In his day about 500 years ago, Farnese called the Church to focus on what the Child in the crib came to accomplish and to continue His mission. I am echoing that call with a focus on sharing life generously.

There are three words for life in Greek: bios, psychē, and zōe.

Bios points to physical life. People who give themselves this life focus on comfort. They fight for political justice and tend to demand what they think they deserve.

Psychē relates to feelings, affections, desires, and aversions. People who give themselves to this life aim for social change.

Zōe links to divine and supernatural life. It’s the uncreated, eternal life only found in God and also the life uniquely possessed by the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit.

If you want to spread the divine and supernatural life of God in 2025, please keep reading.

At GTP we multiply faithful stewards and help ministries to follow standards so they flourish. This increases the spreading of zōe exponentially.

To submit a grant to add 2-3 staff to serve underserved workers, we need to expand our support base.

Before funding us, a foundation wants to see more monthly givers. In November we only had 37 and needed to reach 100 by 31 December 2024. Then God supplied a matching grant.

GTP gets $100 for every monthly giver that starts their monthly giving by year-end.

We are up to 88 monthly givers. Praise God, but we need 12 more. Be one of the 12. Set up monthly giving at any amount. And position GTP to get a $500,000-$600,000 grant. That is not a typo!

Please set up monthly giving to GTP here. Strengthen GTP to spread zōe exponentially.