Tea at Trianon: How Do I Surrender the Pain in My Heart?

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Thursday, October 1, 2020

How Do I Surrender the Pain in My Heart?

From Worth the Chase:

Maybe you are suffering from a broken heart, maybe your boyfriend or girlfriend cheated on you. Or maybe a trusted friend or relative has stabbed you in the back so to speak. The pain is raw and deep and you don’t want any pain or bitterness to consume you.

Another scenario is that you could be anxious about exam results, your situation at work or you are afflicted healthwise. How can you really surrender these situations to the Lord?

Sometimes we do not want to surrender because we feel unworthy of God’s love or feel we are doing too many mistakes in life. Maybe we feel that surrendering is too hard, and takes too much time and effort. Or maybe we are afraid of suffering.

Is there a magic formula one can use? How can one be sure that they have surrendered the problem, situation and pain to the Lord?

Sacred Scripture speaks of the importance of self- surrender. “Surrender yourself to the Lord, and wait patiently for Him. Do not be preoccupied with an evildoer who succeeds in his way when he carries out his schemes.” Psalm 37:7-9 No, there is no magic formula. God is merely looking for the attitude of one’s heart. While it’s easy to say to Jesus, “Help me to trust in you” it’s so important and even harder to be more thorough.

It’s important to be real with the Lord. Pour out your heart to Him and so share what you are feeling to Him. Then say, “God, I have tried to deal with this, but I can’t do so anymore. I need your help. I need your strength. I need your grace. I place it at the foot of your cross. Please take this situation and use it for your glory.” (Read more.)