Love Defines True Charity

***For the next two weeks, I will be steering my Lenten Blog Challenge into the direction of The Way of the Cross, also known as The Stations of the Cross, Via Crucis, and Via Dolorosa. These names are used to signify either a series of pictures or tableaux representing certain scenes in the Passion of Christ, each corresponding to a particular incident, or the special form of devotion connected with such representations. I will be posting a Station each day, then reflecting on that Station. To read more about the Way of the Cross, click HERE.

STATION VI: VERONICA WIPES THE FACE OF JESUS

Sacred blood runs down the Savior's face. Sweat drips into His swollen eyes as He sees a figure moving slowly towards Him. A woman named Veronica extends more than a cloth to her Lord, she offers a compassionate heart to a passionate soul. The Holy Spirit animates this daughter of God to offer her hands and her towel in service of the wounded Son. Evil may have spit in the face of Love, but love would now wash it clean again, if only for a moment. No gesture of love, no act of charity, however small, is forgotten in the Kingdom of God.

 REFLECTION:  

Sometimes I sit and feel that no one even remembers me, notices me, or would be phased if I was gone-- that's the devil talking-- that's depression-- that's real life for some of us. I think we all go through rough patches were we feel lonely, wondering how many people really care about us and how many only think of themselves. It's easy to feel like it's "you against the world." In those moments, I get a text from my beloved husband, my best friend and it reads: "Wipe away the tears, my love" and in that moment, the devil gets shot down-- I rise up and realize that I am something special. Even small acts of charity and kindness can be huge graces from God as we carry our cross each day. Acts of charity bring us into community, they offer us hope and keep us going. A smile, a kind word, or a text that is filled with emojicons can bring us relief! One by one, those acts of charity "wipe the face" of Jesus, hidden within all of those faces around you.