“Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid.”—John 14: 27
Etty Hillesum was a vibrant young Jewish woman who lived in Nazi-occupied Amsterdam and died in Auschwitz in 1943. In the months before she was arrested, she underwent a profound transformation through psychotherapy. She discovered God and refused to give in to hatred, even when facing the evil of the Holocaust. She refused to worry about what might be her fate.
She journaled: “If one burdens the future with one’s worries, the future cannot grow organically. I am filled with confidence, not that I shall succeed in worldly things, but that even when things go badly for me, I shall still find life good and worth living.” She realized that the fear of suffering causes more pain than the suffering itself does.
About these fears she wrote: “We have to fight fears daily, like fleas, those many small worries about tomorrow. for they sap our energy….We must not allow ourselves to become infested with thousands of petty fears, and worries, so many motions of no confidence in God. Everything will turn out all right.”
Be confident! Trust in God to handle the future.
Lord, like Etty, help me to discover you anew so my life can unfold organically. The future is yours. The present is mine. Help me to live it well. Amen.
—from the book Three Minutes with God: Reflections and Prayers to Encourage, Inspire, and Motivate
by Monsignor Frank Bognanno