Although I am so weak and unworthy in myself, God uses me for the good of others. The many defects of our temperament should not hinder our labors in behalf of others. These faults have nothing to do with the grace which operates effectively on the souls for whom we labor.
Although our Lord acquaints us with His designs regarding others, this should not give us the least desire to aid them, only in the order of His providence. It implies great death to self, never to put our hand selfishly to the work of the Lord.
When we mingle self, we retard rather than advance His work. Nature is so corrupt that it deeply infests spiritual things, and so subtle as to conceal itself under all artifices.
✦ Weak — And Used
Guyon begins where yesterday's transparent soul left off — with radical honesty about her own weakness. The ray passes through her. The grace operates effectively. And she is still weak. The defects remain. The faults are real. And these have nothing to do with the grace. The instrument does not need to be perfect for the Musician to play perfectly through it. The weakness is the beast skin covering the Tabernacle. The glory inside is God's — and the rough exterior keeps everyone from confusing the vessel with the Source.
When we mingle self, we retard rather than advance His work. The quenching from day sixteen. The impetuousness from day eleven. The temptation to help God — returning here as a final warning. The death is not only in the doing. It is in the not-doing. The restraint. The waiting. The willingness to let the souls we aid repulse the effort — and to trust that God will make good the results in due time. 🙏
Although I am so weak and unworthy in myself, God uses me for the good of others. It is an experience of joy to be used in this way.
Roger and I are built to help others because the Lord enables us. It's especially joyful to us since we are introverts by nature. 🙏
✦ Introverts by Nature — Channels by Grace
Two introverts — enabled by the Lord — built to help others. The joy is not in the spotlight. The joy is in being the transparent instrument through which the ray passes. The soul that would never seek the crowd is the soul God uses most quietly — and most effectively. Introverts by nature. Channels by grace.
The weakness Guyon describes is not a limitation — it is a qualification. The weak instrument cannot take credit. The introvert does not seek an audience. And the grace flows through both without obstruction — because neither is tempted to believe the ray originates in themselves. 🙏
"Introverts by nature. Channels by grace."
Le and Roger · Built to help others · The joy of being usedWhile you perceive nothing sensible or apparent in your religious state, there is evidence to others of a hidden spring of life within your soul. God does not give you the sweet rain which, falling, clothes all the surface of the soul with verdure, but He gives you the deep well-spring, by which means you live and flourish.
Not herbs and flowers, which are born and die in the same day, but substantial fruits, ripening for eternity.
The righteous are as a tree planted by the rivers of water, whose leaf is always green. This is because the roots are well watered by the deep-flowing current.
God never ceases to operate in your heart. The calm, resigned state of your soul is proof of this.
Thank you for pointing out that this was for me, as I search for the well-spring. This for me is reason for living — nothing more satisfying.
Psalm 1:3 — He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper. Most wonderful scripture — a tree planted by the rivers of water. 🙏
✦ Sweet Rain and Deep Roots
The soul that does not feel the sensible consolation — the sweet rain, the surface greenness, the emotions that say God is here — may believe it is dry. But Guyon says: the absence of the sweet rain is not the absence of God. It is the presence of something deeper. The well-spring. The root system that reaches water the surface knows nothing about.
The sweet rain produces herbs — green today, gone tomorrow. The deep well-spring produces fruit — substantial, lasting, ripening for eternity. The soul that wishes for the sweet rain is wishing for herbs. The soul that accepts the deep well-spring receives fruit. And the fruit does not announce itself with surface verdure. It grows in hiddenness — from roots no one sees, watered by a current no one feels.
Psalm 1:3 — the tree does not go looking for water. It is planted where the water is. The planting is God's work. The roots are God's work. The fruit is God's work. The tree simply stays planted — and prospers. Le's reason for living — nothing more satisfying — is the deep well-spring that Guyon describes: the hidden current that produces fruit no sweet rain could produce. 🙏
Weak — And Used
The defects of temperament have nothing to do with the grace. The instrument does not need to be perfect. The beast skins cover the Tabernacle. Introverts by nature — channels by grace.
The Deep Well-Spring
Not the sweet rain that clothes the surface. The deep current that reaches the roots. Not herbs that die in a day — substantial fruits ripening for eternity. Planted by the rivers of water.
Reason for Living
Nothing more satisfying than the search for the well-spring. Psalm 1:3 — the tree planted, the leaf always green, the fruit in its season. God never ceases to operate. The calm soul is proof.
Guyon's thirty-third day. And today she gives both the honesty about weakness and the comfort of depth — the beast skin and the well-spring, held together in one truth.
Day five — Guyon's prayer of abandonment: "Without scruples, without fears, without any agitating thoughts." And today: God never ceases to operate in your heart. The calm, resigned state of your soul is proof of this. The abandonment from day five has borne its fruit by day thirty-three. The calm is the proof. The resignation is the evidence. The well-spring is flowing.
Day fifteen — writing on sand: "No more of self remaining in me to be wounded." And today: although I am so weak and unworthy in myself, God uses me. The self that would be wounded by awareness of weakness has been displaced. The weakness is acknowledged without self-pity — because the fault is written on sand and the grace flows from the well-spring.
Day four — the little rills: "The source of these little rills is in the depths of the soul." And today: the deep well-spring by which means you live and flourish. The little rills from Mouilleron-Saint-Germain have found their source — the deep-flowing current that never stops, that reaches the roots no one sees, that produces fruit ripening for eternity.
Le and Roger — introverts built to help: Two quiet souls. Not the mighty men of renown. The transparent instruments — weak, introverted, enabled. The joy is in the using, not in the recognition. Guyon from the Bastille. Le and Roger from a motorhome in Portugal. Different centuries. Same well-spring. Same deep-flowing current. Same fruit ripening for eternity. 🙏