A place to run to

By joannsblog2016 on January 12, 2020 • ( 0 )

Do not let the past disturb you. Just leave everything in the Sacred Heart and begin again with joy.
St Teresa if Calcutta

Are you exhausted and burdened and need to find an oasis of rest? Are you in a circumstance that is constantly resulting in pain and you want to find a place of refuge? Are you feeling unloved? You’re heart is running on empty?

Where will you run?

Morning and lunch I was permeated with excitement. I couldn’t wait to spend my time with Jesus.

Each morning upon waking, I quietly climbed out of the bed to not wake anyone. I indulged in all the 20-30 minutes I had before anyone would wake up. Many mornings it was as if my body was transported to another time and place. This also occurred during my lunch hour when I raced to the chapel for Adoration.

During those days, I was looking for refuge, a shelter, a place and a moment to find joy and peace from all the things surrounding me. I was looking for a place to hide from all that was happening in my life and what I found was the greatest hiding spot – Jesus’ most Sacred Heart.

For the last 12 days, I have been engaged in this prayer challenge focused on the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Seven years ago when the spark was lit in my faith journey, one of the first devotions and feast days that intrigued me was the Sacred Heart of Jesus. I recall slipping away from work and going to morning Mass on the feast day of the Sacred Heart. I will also tell you before this time, I had never heard of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. After communion, tears profusely exited my eyes. Jesus was beginning my healing process in that very second.

Reflecting back on those moments of running to Jesus to find safety and peace, I realize they were moments I was running towards His heart. Each time I was there, I was wrapped and hidden within His heart. He hid me from the pain and provided me strength from His love for all I would face that day and the days ahead.

Today images of Jesus’ Sacred Heart and the Divine Mercy sit in my home and in my office to remind me of His love and mercy during this time of my life. It reminds me that in all my struggles in life this is the place I can run to. It is in His loving arms that I find refuge from anything I’m dealing with. It’s in His heart that I find a love that never changes and is always welcoming me to be embraced and filled when my heart feels empty.

I don’t know your circumstance or what you may be feeling or not feeling. If you are feeling lost, overcome with pain, unloved, or hopeless, try running to His Sacred Heart. I invite you to bask in His heart for 20-30 minutes and feel the love, peace, comfort and refuge that His Sacred Heart bestows upon you. Just as St Teresa of Calcutta states take each of these moments to the Sacred Heart and begin again every time – with joy that only Jesus can fill you with.