{"id":38653,"date":"2019-12-19T15:16:53","date_gmt":"2019-12-19T21:16:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.markmallett.com\/blog\/?p=38653"},"modified":"2019-12-20T14:02:36","modified_gmt":"2019-12-20T20:02:36","slug":"the-test","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.markmallett.com\/blog\/the-test\/","title":{"rendered":"The Test","gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"text"}]},"content":{"rendered":"

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YOU<\/strong> may not realize it, but what God has been doing in your heart and mine of late through all the trials, temptations, and now His personal<\/em> request to smash your idols once and for all\u2014is a test. <\/em>The Test is the means by which God not only measures our sincerity but prepares us for the Gift <\/em>of living in the Divine Will.<\/p>\n

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TIME IS SHORT<\/p>\n

Before I explain this, I want to assure you again of God’s mercy\u2014that even if you have failed <\/em>the test thus far, it is not too late. As Jesus said to St. Faustina:<\/p>\n

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If you do not succeed in taking advantage of an opportunity, do not lose your peace, but humble yourself profoundly before Me and, with great trust, immerse yourself completely in My mercy. In this way, you gain more than you have lost, because more favor is granted to a humble soul than the soul itself asks for\u2026 <\/em><\/strong>\u00a0\u2014Jesus to St. Faustina, Divine Mercy in My Soul<\/em>, Diary, n. 1361<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

By humbling yourself in the truth of who you are, and who you aren’t, <\/em>you have the opportunity to gain even more than what was lost up until the present moment. Believe me, even the angels are astounded by the generosity of the Father, who renews His mercies each and every day.<\/p>\n

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The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is thy faithfulness. (Lam 3:22-23)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

All that said, I want to tell you in all seriousness: time is of the essence. <\/em>Events are beginning over the whole earth that will precipitate The Great Shaking<\/em><\/a> of consciences. Now, you can either be on the side of those stumbling in \"\"the darkness or on the side of those helping others through it\u2014the latter constituting Our Lady’s Little Rabble<\/a>. If you wish to be a member of the New Gideon’s<\/a> little army, then what is needed right now is a sincere and resolute break with your past sins, including those inordinate<\/em> attachments to even naturally good things that are creating Voids of Love<\/a>.<\/p>\n

But joining Our Lady’s Little Rabble is only a secondary mission. The primary reason for emptying yourself entirely of every fragment of your human will <\/em>is so that you can receive the Gift of Living in the Divine Will. This is no small thing; it is not another devotion; it’s not another movement among movements in the Catholic Church. It is the Grace of graces to clothe the surviving Church on earth in the Wedding Garment of Purity <\/em>so as to make her a suitable Bride for the Return of Jesus in Glory<\/em><\/a> at the end of time.<\/p>\n

It was this awareness of the “signs of the times” that led St. John XXIII to declare a coming “era of peace” that would, in fact, facilitate this coming “new and divine holiness”:<\/p>\n

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The task of humble Pope John is to \u201cprepare for the Lord a perfect people,\u201d which is exactly like the task of the Baptist, who is his patron and from whom he takes his name. And it is not possible to imagine a higher and more precious perfection than that of the triumph of Christian peace, which is peace at heart, peace in the social order, in life, in wellbeing, in mutual respect, and in the brotherhood of nations.<\/strong> \u2014POPE ST. JOHN XXIII, True Christian Peace, <\/em>December 23rd, 1959; www.catholicculture.org<\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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God himself had provided to bring about that \u201cnew and divine\u201d holiness with which the Holy Spirit wishes to enrich Christians at the dawn of the third millennium<\/em>, in order to \u201cmake Christ the heart of the world.\u201d<\/strong> \u2014POPE JOHN PAUL II, Address to the Rogationist Fathers, <\/em>n. 6, www.vatican.va<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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SOARING TOWARD PERFECTION<\/p>\n

I have written and recorded a Forty Day Lenten Retreat<\/em><\/a> on breaking free from attachments. I want to remind you again of the image I used of a hot air balloon.<\/p>\n

Even if a balloon is filled with hot air and has begun its ascent into the heavens, it cannot leave the earth if even \"\"one <\/em>tether is attached to it. So it is with you and I: if we cling to even one act of our human will that is contrary to God’s will, we are prevented from soaring toward the perfection for which we are made. Yes, for which we are made! <\/em>We think that freedom is doing what we please on earth. But true freedom consists in loving God with one’s whole heart, mind, soul and strength, and thus, our neighbour as ourself. It’s only in this total sacrifice <\/em>of one’s own will that we actually find ourselves. Ah, indeed, the cross is foolishness to the world, but for us who believe, it is “the power of God and the wisdom of God.”<\/em> [1]<\/sup><\/a>1 Cor 1:24<\/span><\/span>