Fourteenth Meditation

(The Dark Night, book II: chapter 4)


"Do not conform yourselves to this age but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and pleasing and perfect…Let love be sincere; hate what is evil, hold on to what is good;… Do not grow slack in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, endure in affliction, persevere in prayer." (30)


Sheer Grace

The partial musings of her mind,
And old affections of her will,
Without support, are left behind --
In dark sorrow, she treads uphill.

She longs to reach the Divine Source:
Of Wisdom to renew her mind;
Of Divine Love, to fix the course
On His will where'er it may wind.

By sheer grace, the transition's made:
To His wisdom, with it's new light;
To His love, strong and without jade;
As she passed through privation's night.

Her intellect, Wisdom's infused;
Her will, Love's strengthened and distilled;
Her memory is not bemused --
Love's tender compassion has filled.

Reaching a higher resting place,
Her soul cries out: "Ah! The sheer grace!"


May the sheer grace of the Spirit transform us into His image through the privation of the night of the spirit.

30. Romans 12:2,9,11,12


(c) Paul Buis, 2004