There are two subjects of meditation which will serve us well if we do not wish to offend Our Lord: to love His goodness and to trust in His mercy. Great is the blindness of the soul that does not love so good a Lord, and great is the weakness of those who do not trust in the superabundance of His mercy. And just as the favours He has bestowed on us should lead us to love Him – for they are given with the love that God has for us, which calls for our love – so they should also compel us to trust, for He who created us and gave us a path to follow will help us to remain on it.
And we should draw the same conclusion from Our Lord’s Passion: we must love Him, because He died for love of us, and we must trust in Him, because His merits are ours. Far be it from us, then, to have any doubt, any discouragement, any mistrust, for as great as the power of His Passion is, so great are our merits; they are ours because He gave them to us. There I glory and trust, there I mock my enemies, there I fly to my Father, and offer Him the Son, there I pay what I owe, and still have more left over. And though my sorrows be many, there I find more remedy and cause for joy than for sorrow.
O loving and all-loving God, what a hard blow is dealt to You by those who do not trust in You with all their hearts! I do not know what to say except that we are worse than animals, since we still do not trust in You after You have shown us such favour and, even more, have died for us!
O my God of mercy! May it please You not to allow our hearts, after so many thousands of favours, to remain in doubts and queries as to whether or not You love us, whether or not You will save us! Clearer than the midday sun are Your testimonies – the things You have done in our hearts – telling how much You care for us, and giving us hope that You will save us.
ST. JOHN OF AVILA. Letter 54.
In: Obras Completas.
Madrid: BAC, 1952, v.I, p.523-524
Thank you