Divine intimacy...

"I often touch His feet, which are between the chalice and the canon when He is standing upright on the altar during the Mass. I touch His side, and I feel the wound in His side and His ribs through His cloak, when I raise the Host. I stay and rest It against His side...  through His mantle I could feel the shape of His ribs." - Pere Lamy
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I've been reading with particular interest the story of Pere Lamy - an incredibly simple priest-mystic from France in the early part of the 20th century.  His intimacy with Our Lord and Our Lady is so consoling, it lightens the heart. 
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In light of the anniversary of Pearl Harbor today, I found the following quote particularly interesting:
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“Our Lord told me that the War had three causes; Blasphemy, Sunday labour, and the desecration of marriage. When a young man or a young girl falls into sin, it is nothing in comparison. It is a grave sin, but after all it is human weakness."
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Pere Lamy also casts light upon the darkness and trials the Lord permits in our lives at times, reminding us we cannot always remain in a state of consolation...
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“You must pay dearly for spiritual graces. Better not to have any; you are in total darkness afterwards. If the Blessed Virgin was behind that door, I would not ask Her to come in. All that is to be paid for… more by tears of the heart, than tears of the body." -Pere Lamy
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A very good Carmelite Mother once reprimanded me after I had gone on a bit, lamenting some spiritual trials I was going through, "How can you complain when Our Lord shows you such things?"  She then laughed at me.  To be sure, Mother would have agreed with Pere Lamy on the following point as well:  "One should never order one's life according to visions, especially according to the visions of others. In material things we must use common sense, too. We must be careful of mysticism. The devil stands behind the Mother of God: If you let her pass by you will find the devil." - Pere Lamy
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That said, sometimes the darkness is so deep, we can forget in an instant that it is never dark for Him - even when the darkness can be the result of our infidelity... giving up to discouragement. 
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Thanks for your prayers.
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On being asked for advice on how to obtain the grace of an answered prayer, Father Lamy replied- “First and foremost, you must be in a state of grace. Before praying, you have to kneel in the Confessional. Then, pray with confidence, and then finally with perseverance.”


H/T Mystics of the Church, Spirit Daily.