Force

The force of mere wind can move

boulders and bend us down.

 It pays to be humble, even though we may not appreciate humiliation at the time. I remember reading St. Teresa of Avils' complaint when she fell off a coach and into a mud puddle. Her remark was, "It is no wonder you have so few friends." referring to Jesus.

One benefit of humility is that we see things as they are, and not as deception might desire us to see things. We might think we have plumbed the depths of all ramifications of a point, when In fact, we don't see with the proper perspective. We might think we have everything in view, only to realize later that we saw only the tip of the iceberg, and are standing, in fact, in a most dangerous position.

One might think that having mystical experiences, we know it all, when in fact, we need to clean the mud off our faces in order to be able to even open our eyes. 

I get nervous around people who are so certain of things that delusion and error could never creep into their field of view.

Myriad souls have gone to hell, certain they had led a virtuous life, beyond any error. Bless the Lord for humiliations and trials because it is a great gift from God to see the truth so we might realize His mercy toward us and His great love. This entails realizing how we have been spared judgement and condemnation; surely from such encounters flows great love toward us if we
love Him for who He is.

If we have even grasped the teachings of the Church sufficiently to have grown into holiness, we honor Him who has labored do for us that He might save us.

For sin, there is punishment, because it offends the Lord who never sinned and wishes us to be the same.  We should avoid too grave a view of our position, but also have a view of His mercy emcouraging us to do better before we fall off the path.

We should seek to see things plainly and in proper perspective. Children of God can be in error, and might think they are thinking correctly as far as they can see. To be seeing things childishly can lead us to think immaturely when God is looking to find some growth. Hiding behind rigourous rules and regulations can kill us quickly by failing to clear our vision.

Humility grows out of love. and love transforms lagality into affection which is blinded by His light. Let us not think we have attained great heights and light, when in fact we are ignorant of our true position before God.

Nothings touches the soul like a clear view of how other people are. We could never bear the weight of the cross they carry, and we owe them our love and compassion. Citing rules by which we can deny other people their place in the estimation of others is deadly wrong. God is the great exception. He is capable of anything, and frequently reveals the truth to us so we may know for whom to pray, and for whom to suffer.