New Every Morning
After I sent my last update, my sister Hélène reached out to share some of her thoughts about the Diary of Saint Faustina and what a gift this saint is to our Church. She then told me that…are you ready for this?
Before she entered the convent, Saint Faustina’s given name was Helena. My two big sisters are Hélène and Helena! God is so funny and good.
I have been feeling so well! I do a little more each day. But one recent day, I did a little too much, I guess. I went out grocery shopping. I got my nails done (a must because Stephen gets married May 18!). I took a work call. That may not sound like much, but trust me, it was significantly more than I have been doing. By the end of the day, I was crumpled ball on the couch, feeling too exhausted and in too much pain to do anything but cry that I was so very tired of everything hurting all the time.
Poor Dan. These are the special moments reserved just for him. He patiently helped me figure out that I needed to take some pain meds and go to bed. In the morning, I felt new again. It isn’t always as dramatic as that, but this is a pattern I have recognized not only daily, but in a much larger sense as well.
The time I spent in the hospital felt neverending. Time stood still while I lay there, and yet here I am now, by the grace of God, doing so well, coming back to life, bit by bit each day. Even if I am tired and in pain at the end of the day, after a good night’s sleep (in my own bed—praise God!—may I never take for granted the blessing of sleeping in my own bed), I feel good every morning. This Scripture verse has been running through my head:
“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning.” Lamentations 3:22-23
New every morning. There is such truth and hope in those words. Whatever you are going through right now, whatever pain or suffering in your life feels unending, God is present with you in it. He wants to touch you with his mercy.
I don't know about you, but I like prayer guarantees. I used to regularly pray Mother Teresa’s Flying Novena because it felt like a quick and sure way to get whatever it was that I was praying for. It’s not magic, of course, but it is a practical way to pray for Mother Teresa’s and Our Lady’s intercession for a special intention.
So I love to see in God’s own Word that he promises us that his mercies never end. They are new every morning.
And on this merciful morning, as I read my few pages of Saint Faustina’s diary, I was reminded of the power of the chaplet of Divine Mercy. In revelation, Jesus said to her:
“My daughter, encourage souls to say the chaplet which I have given to you. It pleases Me to grant everything they ask of Me by saying the chaplet. When hardened sinners say it, I will fill their souls with peace, and the hour of their death will be a happy one.”
He had me at “grant everything they ask.”
If you don’t know how to pray the chaplet, don’t worry, it’s easy! My kids used to call it the “cheating rosary” because it’s simpler and shorter than praying a rosary. Here’s a quick guide.
Will you pray it with me today? Bring all of your wants and needs to Jesus and entrust them to his Divine Mercy. He promises. His mercies never end. They are new every morning.