Wear the robe of Heaven, not that of this world. Be in this world, but not of it. Be otherworldly though here on earth. Choose simplicity over what is royal.
This is a lesson of an Infant in a manger against the great and growing temptation of our time.
Try to see things more from His perspective, says a wise counselor. Let the Light of His Presence — exploding under that star — so pervade your mind that everything is viewed through and with that Light and only through and with that Light.
The glitter of gold and the glint of diamonds are false lights.
In the mighty battle over your mind, place on your head the helmet of faith (Ephesians 6). Seal it this Christmas. Let nothing negative enter.
We are created with the capacity to experience foretastes of Heaven but only if we shut out the world and focus on His Presence — so available this weekend, with Joseph, with Mary, with the simple homage of livestock and angels.
When we focus on His Presence, sitting with Him, we repose with Him in heavenly realms.
What the world exerts is a downward pull. “In this world where the god money is adored so much,” Christ’s birth “helps us to contemplate the littleness of this God who has overturned worldly values,” the Pope said this week (12/21/16).
We are bombarded by media with the glories of greed and lust, with fame, with cynicism. When we partake of the chalice the world offers, we find that it is plonk, a cheap wine that blurs the vision.
Stay in continual communication with the Lord. Go to God with every temptation. Let no carnal thought take root — not one. Closeness with the Immaculate is clarity. Refuse to worry about what the world wants you to worry about. Stay alert, knowing every moment of the battle being waged against your mind.
Said a word: “Rest in My radiant Presence. The world around you seems to spin faster and faster, till everything is a blur. Yet there is a cushion of calm at the center of your life, when you are in union with Me.” When we dive into deep waters with trust, we find His Arms there.
In His Light will you find that most of the time what you worry about is not important. Troubles, when they redound to Heaven, are light and momentary. They are only clouds. When they weigh on us, we are unable to rise.
The Star of Bethlehem is always there, if our eyes are clear enough to see it.
