I like this video of Fr. Mike Smith on Picking up your cross daily. He has a simple and practical classification of the types of crosses that I have to carry – active and passive crosses. I will adopt this. He also reminded everybody that “denying yourself” is not using a “harder is holier” approach.
“Then Jesus told his disciples, ‘If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it” (Matthew 16:24-25).
Crosses – I have to accept that I have to identify and pick up my crosses daily for God’s sake. This will contribute to my zeal for life. I will have active purification crosses and passive purification crosses. I will identify my active purification crosses and do them on a daily routine basis to serve God well. I will welcome my passive purification crosses and engage them to serve God well also. “Deny yourself and pick up your cross daily.” “for my sake, by my side, with my strength.”
We need to carry and accept the two types of crosses for our purification, sanctification and salvation. Active crosses for purification (which are not easy – it takes a resolve, discipline and perseverance) are not enough. Passive crosses for purification (trials, challenges and difficulties given to us by God) are also needed.
More explanations on active and passive purifications
What Are Passive Purifications and Why Are They Needed?
What Are Passive Purifications and Why Are They Needed?
Have you undertaken certain Lenten practices or abstinences to assist you growth in holiness? If so, you do well. Practices such as these are included in what are known as “active purifications.” Active purifications consist of our holy works and efforts and our mortifications, which, by the grace of God, help to purify our mind, our heart, and what is called our “sensitive appetite.”
However, there are also “passive purifications,” which are quite essential for our growth in holiness and our readiness to see God one day. These purifications are called passive because they are worked in us by God. They are necessary to attain to the promises of God because mere human effort, through the practice of the virtues, is not enough to attain to the lofty and wonderful perfection God has promised us.
In other words, many passive purifications are needed for us! When trials and difficulties beset us, it is so easy for us to become resentful or discouraged. We often ask, “Why does God permit this?” And the answer may well be that we very much need it! Truth be told, we need a lot of purifications in order to grow and, ultimately, to be ready for Heaven. We are “hard cases” and deep surgery is necessary, repeated surgery too.
Perhaps the best we can say is, “Be as gentle as possible, Lord, but do what you need to do.”
Here’s an old hymn on the troubles of the African-American experience. One of the verses says,
We are often tossed and driven
On the restless sea of time,
Somber skies and howling tempests
Oft succeed a bright sunshine
In the land of perfect day
When the mists have rolled away
We will understand it better
By and By
For the moment, here are my identified active crosses in life:
- Daily walking exercises (3 km in the morning and 3 km in the afternoon)
- Daily stretching and flexing exercise (20 to 30 minutes)
- Daily rosary (5 cycles of 5 decades)
- Daily Bible reading / listening to Bible passages and lessons and podcasts and YouTube)
- Evangelization through social media – once a week
- PEP Talk – weekly
- Serving the needs of my wife
- Serving the needs of my son and daughter
- Compassionate patient care
- Will accept the sickness and disease that I am having now (genus valgus, hypertension, carpal tunnel syndrome, etc.)
- etc. (will complete the list)
My passive crosses in life:
- will be ready to engage and manage challenges that come into my life daily
- will be ready to face the sickness and disease that may afflict me in the future
- will be ready to face death
ROJ@21dec15
ROJoson Notes on Life 