Uniting Suffering with Jesus

[theotikos]

I don’t understand how we are to unite our suffering to Jesus. I know its good for a grace but I don’t get it yet. Does that mean we simply pray “Lord I offer you my cross of suffering today” so then what? We just leave it all to Him?
I know its redemptive because I guess it atones for our sins? but I don’t get it too much. I know the fundamentals of Catholicism pretty much. So how do we unite out suffering with Jesus? Do you have examples?
Thanks.
T.

 

[Eucharisted]

vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/apost_letters/documents/hf_jp-ii_apl_11021984_salvifici-doloris_en.html

Divine Mercy In My Soul:

In suffering, I must be patient and quiet, knowing that everything passes in time. (253)

And the Lord said to me, My child, you please me most by suffering. In your physical as well as your mental sufferings, My daughter, do not seek sympathy from creatures. I want the fragrance of your suffering to be pure and unadulterated. I want you to detach yourself, not only from creatures, but also from yourself. My daughter, I want to delight in the love of your heart, a pure love, virginal, unblemished, untarnished. The more you will come to love suffering, My daughter, the purer your love for Me will be. (279)

Once when I was suffering greatly, I left my work and escaped to Jesus and asked Him to give me His strength. After a very short prayer I returned to my work filled with enthusiasm and joy. Then, one of the sisters said to me, “You must have many consolations today, Sister; you look so radiant. Surely, God is giving you no suffering, but only consolations.” “You are greatly mistaken, Sister… for it is precisely when I suffer much that my joy is greater; and when I suffer less, my joy is also less.”… I tried to explain to her that when we suffer much we have a great chance to show God that we love Him; but when we suffer little we have less occasion to show God our love; and when we do not suffer our love is neither great nor pure. By the grace of God, we can attain a point where suffering will become a delight to us, for love can work such pure things in pure souls. (303)

True love is measured by the thermometer of suffering. Jesus, I thank You for the little daily crosses, for opposition to my endeavours, for the hardships of communal life, for the misinterpretation of my intentions, for humiliations at the hands of others, for the harsh way in which we are treated, for false suspicions, for poor health and loss of strength, for self-denial, dor dying to myself, for lack of recognition in everything, for the upsetting of all my plans. …(continued…343)

Oh if only the suffering soul knew how much it is loved by God, it would die of joy and excess of happiness! Some day, we will know the value of suffering, but then we will no longer be able to suffer. (963)

My daughter it is time to take action; I am with you. Great persecutions and sufferings are in store for you, but be comforted by the thought that any souls will be saved and sanctified by this work. (966)

Know…that your silent day-to-day martyrdom in complete submission to My Will ushers many souls into Heaven. And when it seems to you that your suffering exceeds your strength, contemplate My Wounds and you will rise above human scorn and judgment. Meditation on My Passion will help you rise above all things. (1184)

My daughter, your sufferings of this night obtained the grace of mercy for an immense number of souls. (1459)

…there is no way to heaven except the way of the cross. I followed it first. You must learn that it is the shortest way… I am giving you a share in those sufferings because of My special love for you and in view of the high degree of holiness I am intending for you in Heaven. A suffering soul is closer to My heart. (Jesus to suffering souls -1487)

Today, during Mass, I saw the Lord Jesus in the midst of His sufferings, as though dying on the cross. He said to me, My daughter, meditate frequently on the sufferings which I have undergone for your sake, and then nothing of what you suffer for Me will seem great to you. You please Me most when you meditate on My Sorrowful Passion. Join your little sufferings to My Sorrowful Passion, so that they may have infinite value before My majesty. (1512)

1. Today the Lord said to me, I have need of your sufferings to rescue souls. …Almost all night I had such violent pains that it seemed all my intestines were torn to pieces. I threw up the medicine I had taken…I thought it would be the end of me…O my Jesus, do with me as You please. Only give me strength to suffer. Since Your strength supports me, I shall bear everything. O souls, how I love you! (1613)

At eight o’clock I was seized with such violent pains that I had to go to bed at once. I was convulsed with pain for three hours… No medicine had any effect on me, and whatever I swallowed I threw up. At times, the pain caused me to lose consciousness. Jesus had me realise that in this way I took part in His Agony in the Garden, and that He himself allowed these sufferings in order to offer reparation to God for the souls murdered in the wombs of [their] mothers (1276)

 

[margya]

The Promise-God’s Purpose and Plan for When Life Hurts by Fr. Jonathan Morris. It goes into Uniting Suffering with Jesus. It is an excellent book.

 

[theotikos]

vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/apost_letters/documents/hf_jp-ii_apl_11021984_salvifici-doloris_en.html

Divine Mercy In My Soul:

In suffering, I must be patient and quiet, knowing that everything passes in time. (253)

And the Lord said to me, My child, you please me most by suffering. In your physical as well as your mental sufferings, My daughter, do not seek sympathy from creatures. I want the fragrance of your suffering to be pure and unadulterated. I want you to detach yourself, not only from creatures, but also from yourself. My daughter, I want to delight in the love of your heart, a pure love, virginal, unblemished, untarnished. The more you will come to love suffering, My daughter, the purer your love for Me will be. (279)

Once when I was suffering greatly, I left my work and escaped to Jesus and asked Him to give me His strength. After a very short prayer I returned to my work filled with enthusiasm and joy. Then, one of the sisters said to me, “You must have many consolations today, Sister; you look so radiant. Surely, God is giving you no suffering, but only consolations.” “You are greatly mistaken, Sister… for it is precisely when I suffer much that my joy is greater; and when I suffer less, my joy is also less.”… I tried to explain to her that when we suffer much we have a great chance to show God that we love Him; but when we suffer little we have less occasion to show God our love; and when we do not suffer our love is neither great nor pure. By the grace of God, we can attain a point where suffering will become a delight to us, for love can work such pure things in pure souls. (303)

True love is measured by the thermometer of suffering. Jesus, I thank You for the little daily crosses, for opposition to my endeavours, for the hardships of communal life, for the misinterpretation of my intentions, for humiliations at the hands of others, for the harsh way in which we are treated, for false suspicions, for poor health and loss of strength, for self-denial, dor dying to myself, for lack of recognition in everything, for the upsetting of all my plans. …(continued…343)

Oh if only the suffering soul knew how much it is loved by God, it would die of joy and excess of happiness! Some day, we will know the value of suffering, but then we will no longer be able to suffer. (963)

My daughter it is time to take action; I am with you. Great persecutions and sufferings are in store for you, but be comforted by the thought that any souls will be saved and sanctified by this work. (966)

Know…that your silent day-to-day martyrdom in complete submission to My Will ushers many souls into Heaven. And when it seems to you that your suffering exceeds your strength, contemplate My Wounds and you will rise above human scorn and judgment. Meditation on My Passion will help you rise above all things. (1184)

My daughter, your sufferings of this night obtained the grace of mercy for an immense number of souls. (1459)

…there is no way to heaven except the way of the cross. I followed it first. You must learn that it is the shortest way… I am giving you a share in those sufferings because of My special love for you and in view of the high degree of holiness I am intending for you in Heaven. A suffering soul is closer to My heart. (Jesus to suffering souls -1487)

Today, during Mass, I saw the Lord Jesus in the midst of His sufferings, as though dying on the cross. He said to me, My daughter, meditate frequently on the sufferings which I have undergone for your sake, and then nothing of what you suffer for Me will seem great to you. You please Me most when you meditate on My Sorrowful Passion. Join your little sufferings to My Sorrowful Passion, so that they may have infinite value before My majesty. (1512)

1. Today the Lord said to me, I have need of your sufferings to rescue souls. …Almost all night I had such violent pains that it seemed all my intestines were torn to pieces. I threw up the medicine I had taken…I thought it would be the end of me…O my Jesus, do with me as You please. Only give me strength to suffer. Since Your strength supports me, I shall bear everything. O souls, how I love you! (1613)

At eight o’clock I was seized with such violent pains that I had to go to bed at once. I was convulsed with pain for three hours… No medicine had any effect on me, and whatever I swallowed I threw up. At times, the pain caused me to lose consciousness. Jesus had me realise that in this way I took part in His Agony in the Garden, and that He himself allowed these sufferings in order to offer reparation to God for the souls murdered in the wombs of [their] mothers (1276)

Thanks for this. I have the book and totally didn’t retain reading some of this. Its still a mystery to me how suffering can repair the damage of sin done to God. But I guess all I have to is just say a prayer do my part in suffering and the rest will be taken care of.

 

[theotikos]

The Promise-God’s Purpose and Plan for When Life Hurts by Fr. Jonathan Morris. It goes into Uniting Suffering with Jesus. It is an excellent book.

I’m getting this book, thanks. I came across this subject in depth from reading The Coming Chastisement by Brother Craig Driscoll. And its over my head. I am leaning on his interpretation as to the three days of darkness, and all other ills (it seems his interpretation is that its all driven by humans and God is intervening to save us from ourselves)… but i wonder what Morris has to say.

 

[Lief_Erikson]

Consider how Jesus offered His suffering to God in Gethsemane. All of Christ’s body suffered and died in atonement for sin. We, because we are the Body of Christ, are called to share in that suffering and dying in atonement for sin. Just as Christ’s agonies opened the way for grace to pour out into the world, even so the suffering of His Body opens the way for grace to pour out into the world. We are to rise with Him; first we must die with Him, and we have the stupendous grace of suffering and dying just as He did, as sacrificial offerings.

Romans 12:1 says, “I urge you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God, your spiritual worship.”

This is what we do, in unity with Christ, for as Paul says, “This saying is trustworthy: If we have died with him we shall also live with him; if we persevere we shall also reign with him” (2 Tim. 2:11-12).

And again, Paul writes, “Now I rejoice in what was suffered for you, and I fill up in my flesh what is still lacking in regard to Christ’s afflictions, for the sake of his body, which is the church” (1 Col. 1:24).

Nothing is lacking in Christ’s afflictions except that His Body on Earth (for all sin is wiped away through Him) share in these afflictions, for Christ is one and if we are one with Him, we will suffer with Him, for the same reasons He suffered, just as we will rise with Him in the same way He rose.

 

[MarieVeronica]

I don’t understand how we are to unite our suffering to Jesus. I know its good for a grace but I don’t get it yet. Does that mean we simply pray “Lord I offer you my cross of suffering today” so then what? We just leave it all to Him?
I know its redemptive because I guess it atones for our sins? but I don’t get it too much. I know the fundamentals of Catholicism pretty much. So how do we unite out suffering with Jesus? Do you have examples?
Thanks.
T.

“theotikos” I can give you an example of how I offer up my sufferings, in union with Our Lord’s Passion.

I chose a specific part of His Passion. The Crowning with Thorns. And whenever I have a bad thought… (unpleasant memory, uncharitable reaction, judgmental thoughts, etc.)… I ask His pardon first, then I offer the suffering those thoughts cause me… to Our Lord, in the hope that will extract even a small amount of the pain He felt, at the Crowning with Thorns. I also offer physical headaches… in union with Our Lord’s Crown of Thorns.

Perhaps it would help you to do something similar. Or even the same offering that I try to make. Choose a certain part of Our Lord’s Passion. Maybe there is something in your life with which you can draw a comparison.

I hope this is of some small help. God bless you.