February 2007

This is the most intelligent way to live: to place our lives in the hands of the One who gave life to us. Whatever may happen, we can trust in him totally because he is Love and wants the best for us.
When the prophet Jeremiah proclaimed this “blessing,” he added an image that is frequently used in biblical tradition: a tree planted on the banks of a stream of running water. It does not fear the summer heat, for its roots are well nourished, its leaves are always green and it bears abundant fruit.
On the contrary, those who put their hope outside of God—perhaps in power, in riches, or in influential friends—are likened to a bush on land that is dry and salty, on which nothing grows and nothing bears fruit.

«Blessed are those who trust in the Lord»

We turn to the Lord when we find ourselves in difficult situations, when we are desperate because of an incurable illness, a huge debt, or a close brush with death. This is all very understandable. We know, however, that what is impossible for human beings is possible for God. But if “for God all things are possible” (Mt 19:26), why don’t we turn to him in every moment of our lives?
This Word of Life invites us to live in continual union with the Lord, going beyond the many things that we have to ask of him, because we are always in need of his help. “Blessed” – that is, having the joy and fullness of life – is the one who builds a relationship of trust and intimacy with the Lord that comes from faith in his love.
He, the God who is closer and more intimate to us than we are to ourselves, walks with us and knows every beat of our hearts. We can share our joys, sufferings, worries and plans with him. We are never alone, not even in our most dark and difficult moments. We can trust in him completely. He will never disappoint us.

«Blessed are those who trust in the Lord»

Chiara Lubich tells us that a good way to express this intimate relationship is “to work as a team.”
At times we become deeply troubled because we are not able to intervene directly in situations and in people’s lives so that it is difficult to do what seems to be the will of God for us in that moment. We would like to be close to a dear person who is suffering, who is going through a moment of trial, who is ill. We would like to be able to resolve every dilemma, to go to help those peoples at war, the refugees, the hungry, and so on.
We feel so powerless! This is the moment to trust fully in God, even sometimes in a heroic way. Chiara gives some suggestions: “I can do nothing in this case…. Well then, I will do what God wants of me in this moment: study well, sweep well, pray well, take care of my children well…. And God will see to the untangling of this knot, comforting the one who is suffering, sorting out that complicated situation.”
Chiara concludes: “It is a job done in two in perfect teamwork which requires great faith on our part in God’s love for his children and that makes it possible, through our action, for God to have trust in us.
“This reciprocal confidence works miracles.
“We will see that what we could not do, Another has done, and has done far better.
“The heroic act of confidence will be rewarded; our life limited to one field only will acquire a new dimension, we will feel in contact with the infinite…. The reality that we are truly children of a God who is Father, who can do everything, will become clearer to us because we also have experienced it.” ⁽¹⁾

«Blessed are those who trust in the Lord»

“The telephone rang,” recounted Rina, who has been confined to her home for years, “and it was an old lady like me, to whom I have been sending the Word of Life for some time. Her brother was dying and she didn’t know what to do. It was vacation time and she didn’t know whom to call to care for him. Also in the last few years he had become homeless and was forced to live on the streets. I felt my friend’s suffering as my own; I felt totally powerless, like her. What could I do, living so far from her, restricted as I am to my chair? I wanted to share at least a few comforting words with her, but I just didn’t know what to say. I wasn’t even able to do that much! I could only tell her that I would remember to pray for her and her brother.
“That evening, when my friends came back from work, together we entrusted this situation to God and we placed all our fears and doubts in his heart.
“That night, I woke up and imagined that homeless man, alone and dying. I fell back asleep but again woke up a short time later. Each time, I turned to the Father and said: ‘He is your son; you cannot abandon him. Take care of him!’
“A few days later, I got a phone call from my friend; she told me that after having spoken to me that day, she felt a great peace. Then she said: ‘You know, we were able to bring him to the hospital! They were able to help him by giving him some medication for pain relief. He had been purified by his suffering and was ready. He died serenely, after having received Jesus in the Eucharist.’
“In my heart I had a deep sense of gratitude and a greater trust in the Lord.”

Edited by Fr. Fabio Ciardi and Gabriella Fallacara

1) Chiara Lubich, Yes Yes No No, New City London, 1977, pp. 113-114.