Today is the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. In the first reading from Ezekiel 34, we read about how God will shepherd his people. And our Gospel reading is from Luke 15, the parable about the lost sheep.
I want to share a quick story about how Jesus' Sacred Heart is very special to me. A year and a half ago I had a bout with shingles. It was the most painful, horrific pain I have ever suffered, and it went on for weeks. One night in the wee hours of the morning after screaming in anguish for hours on end, I had a mystical experience. I was taken to a place where all the sufferings of all humanity existed and was united with Christ. It wasn't a scary place, but one of peace and love.
I wasn't sure what to make of this and while discussing it with my spiritual director, he posited that perhaps I had been allowed into the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Now, I'm not saying that is what this was (but I believe it is), and you can choose to totally discount this private revelation of mine. But it is something that I shall never forget. When we "offer up" our sufferings, I believe they go to this place, and I believe it is the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
Father, may we offer up our small sufferings and allow them to enter into the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. May His heart be our heart. Amen.
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