The Way of Trust and Love

Those who know me well know that I'm easily reading at least five books at any one time, and right now it's closer to ten. Some of them I've been  slowly working my way through, on and off, for years, while others I read through at a much faster pace.

I started reading Jacques Philippe's book, The Way of Trust and Love: A Retreat Guided by St. Therese of Lisieux, back in September, intending to read it in the week leading up to the feast of St. Therese as a sort of mini-retreat. The six chapters are short enough that reading one every day should easily be possible. I really enjoyed this short book. It was filled with insights from St. Therese herself, and Philippe's interpretations and expansions of those insights were helpful and easy. For anyone who is looking for an introduction to the writings of St. Therese, I highly recommend this book. I would also recommend it for anyone who is struggling to trust God or who would like good, practical suggestions for how to trust God in daily life.

Philippe discusses the importance of daily prayer, particularly daily reading of Scripture. He treats St. Therese in a very human way, showing her weaknesses and how she persevered to overcome those weaknesses. Philippe does not shy away from the fact that life is often difficult, or the harsh realities of our own defects and struggles. What he does is offer practical solutions to overcoming those hardships, looking to St. Therese as our example to follow.

Searching for and Maintaining Peace

I just finished reading Jacques Philippe's book Searching for and Maintaining Peace: A Small Treatise on Peace of Heart. Even though it is a short book, with just over 100 pages, it packed quite a punch!

Some highlights:
"God abides in peace and it is in peace that He accomplishes great things"

"When the Lord affirms that He gives peace, that He gives us peace, these words are divine words, words which have the same creative force as the words that brought the sky and the earth from the void, they carry the same weight as the words that quieted the storm, the words that healed the sick and brought the dead back to life. Since Jesus tells us, even twice, that He gives us His peace, we believe that this peace is never taken away."

"How many young people...hesitate to give their lives entirely to God because they do not have confidence that God is capable of making them completely happy."

"[God] desires our salvation more than we ourselves desire it."

It took me a few months to read through the whole book, even though it was short, because of how much material on which there was to meditate. More than anything else, it taught me how little peace I truly have, but how much peace I would like to have!