January 23 is the annual Liturgical Feast Day of Saint Francis de Sales, whom I chose as my Patron Saint at my Confirmation. He is the patron of writers, publishers, and the media because of the courageous witness for the Christian faith that he carried out so successfully in his generation through those means. My choice to avail myself of his prayers for my writing ministry is obvious.
His most famous book is "Introduction to the Devout Life", truly a spiritual classic that has blessed Christians for hundreds of years in many translations. Below is a word of encouragement from him:
The Cross God has given YOU
“He who does not take up his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me” Matthew 10:38
The everlasting God has in His wisdom, foreseen from eternity the cross that He now presents to you as a gift from His inmost heart.
That cross He has considered with His all-knowing eyes, understood with His Divine mind, tested with His wise justice, warmed with His loving arms and weighed with His own hands, to see that it be not one inch too large and not one ounce too heavy for you.
He has blessed it with His holy Name, anointed it with His grace, perfumed it with His consolation, taken one last glance at you and your courage, and then sent it to you from heaven, a special greeting from God to you, a gift of the all-merciful love of God.
Our business is to accept it from His love and love Him in return. God wills our state in life to be just exactly as it is for now. Let us love that and be content and not trifle away our time hankering after other people's seemingly better circumstances.
-- Saint Francis de Sales (lived in the 1500s)
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