Karen shared a link to a webpage called Daily with De Sales, and I in turn have to share the wealth!
Here is the good bishop’s advice from yesterday:
I desire very little, and what I do desire I desire very little; I have hardly any desires, but if I were to begin my life all over again I would want to have none at all … Ask for nothing, refuse nothing; we must simply abandon ourselves into the hands of Providence, without nourishing any other desire but to do whatever God wills.
St. Paul practiced this act of absolute abandonment at the very moment of his conversion. When he was deprived of his sight, he immediately said, “Lord, what do you want me to do?”
Great stuff, eh?
I told Karen that when I read St. Francis de Sales writing in “bullet points” like this, I am reminded of The Way/Furrow/The Forge by St. Josemaría Escrivá.
And as you may recall, I love St. Josemaría Escrivá!
What are your favorite go-to books when you need a spiritual pick-me-up?
Ad Jesum per Mariam,
I like Abp. Fulton Sheen’s Life of Christ very much. I also open St. Thérèse's Story of a Soul every once in a while. And I am always picked up by Chesterton. Or by the novel In This House of Brede by Rumer Godden.
But when what I’m looking for is a pick-me-up, what I really need to be doing is returning to the Liturgy of the Hours.
I am a huge fan of Mother Angelica!! Her writings are full of wisdom and she speaks from the heart. She is someone that I would love to have as a friend, someone that I could spend time getting to know. She is real.
Thanks for the Daily Advice. St. Francis de Sales is full of wisdom and I welcome the opportunity to read about him. Loved his book called Introduction to the Devout Life, although I have yet to read the whole book. On another note, the Day of Renewal was wonderful. It was so nice to meet the Minnesota Mom. I look forward to the next Day of Renewal. It was so worth the effort of trying to get out of the house with a 2 year old hanging on my leg.:)
Introduction to the Devout Life; The Imitation of Christ and Total Surrender to the Divine Will.
Your post reminds me of the St Therese meditation in Magnificat just a few days ago. “The Lord has always given me what I desire or rather he has made me desire what he wants to give me..”
Thomas Merton, and St Padre Pio are my pick me up friends.
I think you have to read de Sales in bullet points because everything he writes is so profound and to let it absorb – much less actually *live it* – well that takes more than just a few minutes. So he’s it for me. He’s my go-to saint. 🙂
I like to read The Diary of St. Faustina. Holiness for Housewives is another good one especially if I’m having a frazzled day. I like to tune in to The Abundant Life. Jonette is so inspiring, and I often read passages from “Full of Grace, Women and the Abundant Life” because it helps me stay focused on how I can put my faith into practice.
Hi, Margaret!
St. Francis de Sales is just SO good, isn’t he?
Another book I return to often is Abandonment to Divine Providence. Love that one.
Intro to the Devout Life, and Divine Intimacy for reading. Father Basil conferences (opusangelorum.org) on cd for listening. (His best are the conferences on The Qualities of Love and on Holy Silence). I highly recommend them!
Thomas Howard’s “On being Catholic”, as well as Mother Angelica’s books!
Fire Within!
Word verification: chill
LOL!!!!!!
isn’t he great?
I wrote a post about him and shared a beautiful prayer.
Check out the prayer on my blog! (only if you have time and want to of course!)
Actually, right now, I’m reading “Introduction to the Devout Life” again. Thanks for this link!
One of my favorite books is a book based on the teachings of St. Francis de Sales called “How To Profit From Your Faults”.
I also try to keep my “Imitation of Christ” handy.
Divine Intimacy: Meditations on the Interior Life for Every Day of the Liturgical Year.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0895558173/1n9867a-20
Actually, I love St. Francis de Sales Introduction to the Devout Life, and I also read The Imitation of Christ. Others I turn to are:
The Diary of St. Faustina
Story of a Soul – St. Therese’s autobiography
The Liturgy of the Hours– tons of great stuff in there
or
The Psalms. 🙂
I might have others (I’m pathetic when it comes to books), but these were the first ones I thought of. 🙂
~Jenny