St. Thomas Aquinas tells us that the sure way of attaining to the love of God is to dwell on his mercies; the more we appreciate them, the more we shall love him.
Nothing can so us humble us before the compassion of God as the abundance of his mercies; nothing so humbles us before his justice as the abundance of our misdeeds. Let us reflect upon all he has done for us, and all we have done against him. As we count over our sins in detail, so also we count his mercies.
We not fear to be puffed up with knowledge of what he has done for us, if we keep before us the truth that whatsoever is good in us is not of us.
'What have you that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, whay do you glory as if you ahd not received it?' (1 Cor. 4:7)
A lively consciousness of mercies received makes us humble, for this knowledge gives birth to gratitude.
Sometimes we say we are nothing, weakness itself, but are ill pleased to be taken at our word. We pretend to take the lower place, but just to move up higher.
from Athirst for God
St. Francis de Sales
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