Asking for Mercy

Pope John Paul II refers to the need to pray for mercy with a new urgency for our own times: "At no time… especially at a moment as critical as our own — can the Church forget the prayer that is a cry for the mercy of God… The Church has the right and the duty to appeal to the God of mercy 'with loud cries' " (Rich in Mercy, 15).
To St. Faustina, Jesus revealed this same message once again. He gave her three new ways to ask for mercy on the strength of His passion: the Chaplet, the Novena, and prayer at three o'clock; and He taught her to transform her daily life into a continuous prayer for mercy. Through her, He calls us all to ask for His mercy:
Souls that make an appeal to My mercy delight Me. To such souls I grant even more graces than they ask. I cannot punish even the greatest sinner if he makes an appeal to My compassion (Diary, 1146). Beg for mercy for the whole world (570). No soul that has called upon My mercy has ever been disappointed (1541).

Prayer to be Merciful to Others

This prayer gives us a true measure of our mercy, a mirror in which we observe ourselves as merciful Christs. We can make it our morning invocation and our evening examination of conscience.
O Most Holy Trinity! As many times as I breathe, as many times as my heart beats, as many times as my blood pulsates through my body, so many thousand times do I want to glorify Your mercy.
I want to be completely transformed into Your mercy and to be Your living reflection, O Lord. May the greatest of all divine attributes, that of Your unfathomable mercy, pass through my heart and soul to my neighbor.
Help me, O Lord, that my eyes may be merciful, so that I may never suspect or judge from appearances, but look for what is beautiful in my neighbors’ souls and come to their rescue.
Help me, that my ears may be merciful, so that I may give heed to my neighbors’ needs and not be indifferent to their pains and moanings.
Help me, O Lord, that my tongue may be merciful, so that I should never speak negatively of my neighbor, but have a word of comfort and forgiveness for all.
Help me, O Lord, that my hands may be merciful and filled with good deeds, so that I may do only good to my neighbors and take upon myself the more difficult and toilsome tasks.
Help me, that my feet may be merciful, so that I may hurry to assist my neighbor, overcoming my own fatigue and weariness. My true rest is in the service of my neighbor.
Help me, O Lord, that my heart may be merciful so that I myself may feel all the sufferings of my neighbor. I will refuse my heart to no one. I will be sincere even with those who, I know, will abuse my kindness. And I will lock myself up in the most merciful Heart of Jesus. I will bear my own suffering in silence. May Your mercy, O Lord, rest upon me.
You Yourself command me to exercise the three degrees of mercy. The first: the act of mercy, of whatever kind. The second: the word of mercy — if I cannot carry out a work of mercy, I will assist by my words. The third: prayer — if I cannot show mercy by deeds or words, I can always do so by prayer. My prayer reaches out even there where I cannot reach out physically.
O my Jesus, transform me into Yourself, for You can do all things (163).

Difference Between Living in the Divine Will and Doing the Will of God

May 31, 1926 Volume 19The Difference Between Who Lives In the Divine Will and Who is Resigned and Submitted. The First is Sun; the Other is Earth Who Lives by the Effects of the Light.The Light of the Divine Will continues to envelop me; and my little intelligence, while it swims in the immense sea of this light, scarcely can take some drops of light and some little flame of the so many truths and knowledges and happinesses that this interminable sea of the Eternal Will contains. At times I do not find the vocabulary adapted to put on paper that little bit of light. I say little; by that I leave out so much because my poor, little intelligence takes as much as suffices to fill me; the rest I leave.It happens as to a person who dives into the sea. She becomes all wet; the water flows everywhere over her, perhaps even into her vital organs; but, going out of the sea, what does she bring with her of all the water of the sea? Very little and almost nothing compared to that water that remains in the sea.And, by having been in the sea can it be said, perhaps, how much water, how many species and quantity of fish that remain there in the sea?... Certainly not; but, nevertheless, she will know how to speak about that little that she has seen in the sea. Such is my poor soul. And so, my sweet Jesus, while I found myself in this light, went out from my interior and said to me: "My daughter, this is the unity of the light of my Will; and so that you always love It more and confirm yourself increasingly in It, I want to let you know the great difference that there is between who lives in my Will in the unity of this light and who is resigned and submitted to my Will. And, to make you understand well, I will present you the similitude of the sun in the sky.The sun being in the vault of the heavens expands its rays upon the surface of the earth. Look, between earth and sun there is a kind of agreement: the sun in touching the earth and the earth in receiving the light and touch of the sun. Now, the earth, by receiving the touch of the light submits itself to the sun, receives the effects that the light contains; and these effects transform the face of the earth. They make it green again, they flower it; the plants develop; they mature the fruits and so many other marvels that are seen upon the face of the earth -- products always of the effects that the solar light contains.But the sun, by giving its effects, does not give away its light; indeed, jealous, it conserves its unity; and the effects are not lasting. Therefore, the poor earth is seen now all flowered and then all stripped; in nearly every season it is changed; it undergoes continued mutations.Now, such is the soul who is resigned and submits herself to my Will. She lives by the effects that are in It; and, not possessing the light, she does not possess the sources of the effects that there are in the Eternal Will. And, therefore, she is seen almost as earth, now rich in virtue, then poor. She is changed in every circumstance; much more so that if she is not always resigned and submitted to my Will, she will be as the earth that does not want to be touched by the light of the sun; since, if it receives the effects, it is because it let itself be touched by its light. Otherwise, it would remain squalid without producing a blade of grass. Such became Adam after sin; he lost the unity of the light and, therefore, the source of the goods and effects the Sun of my Will contains. He no longer felt in himself the fullness of the Divine Sun; there no longer flowed in him that unity of the light that his Creator had fixed in the depths of his soul, which, communicating to him his likeness, made of him a faithful copy. Before sinning, possessing the source of the unity of the light with his Creator, bringing Him the love and the exchange of all that had been made by Him in all Creation, it was he who harmonized everything and formed the note of accord between Heaven and earth. But, as he withdrew from my Will, no longer did his acts as rays invade Heaven and earth but were restrained almost as plants and flowers in the little circuit of his terrain.Therefore, losing the harmony with all Creation, he became the discordant note of all Creation. Oh! how he descended to the bottom and cried bitterly. He lost the unity of the light which, elevating him above all created things, made of Adam the little god of the earth.Now, my daughter, from that what I have said to you, you can understand that the living in my Will is to possess the source of the unity of the light of my Will with all the fullness of the effects that there are in It. So there rises in her every act light, love, adoration, etc. Who delivers herself up, act for each act, love for each love, as solar light invades everything, harmonizes everything, centers everything in herself and, as refulgent ray, carries to her Creator the exchange for all that I have done for all creatures and the true note of accord between Heaven and earth. What a difference there is between who possesses the source of the goods that the Sun of my Will contains, and who lives by the effects! There would be the difference that there is between the sun and the earth. The sun possesses always the fullness of the light and of the effects. It is always brilliant and majestic in the vault of the heavens, nor does it have need of the earth; and, while it touches everything it is untouchable; it does not let itself be touched by anyone. If someone would even dare to stare at it, with its light it eclipses, blinds him and terrifies him. On the other hand the earth has need of everything, to be touched, stripped; and, if it were not for the light of the sun and its effects, it would be a dismal prison, full of squalid misery.Therefore, there is no comparison that rules between who lives in my Will and who subjects himself to It. Such was the unity of the light that Adam possessed before sinning, and he could not recover it during his life. With him it happened as the earth that goes around the sun, which, not being fixed, while it rotates, it opposes itself to the sun and forms its night. Now, to render him firm again and thus be able to sustain the unity of this light, there was needed a Repairer; and He had to be superior to him. A divine strength was needed to rectify him. Behold the necessity of the Redemption.My Celestial Mamma possessed the unity of this light; and, therefore, more than sun, She can give light to everyone; and, so, between Her and the Supreme Majesty there was never night nor any shadow but always full day. And, therefore, in each instant this unity of the light of my Will made flow in Her all the Divine Life which brought Her seas of beauty, of glory and of love. and She, as in triumph brought her Creator all these seas as hers to attest her love for Him, her adoration, and to make Him fall in love with her beauty. And the Divinity made flow other new seas more beautiful. She possessed so much love that, as connatural, She could love for everyone, adore and supply for everyone. Her little acts, done in the unity of this light, were superior to the greatest acts and all the acts of all creatures together. Therefore, the sacrifices, the works, the love of all other creatures can be called little flames before the sun, little drops of water before the sea, in comparison to the acts of the Sovereign Queen.
April 8, 1918 Volume 12Difference between living united with Jesus, and living in His Will. Returning to the point about living in the Divine Will, I was told that it was like living in the state of union with God; and my always adorable Jesus, in coming, said to me: "My daughter, there is a great difference between living united with Me and living in my Will." As He was saying this, He stretched His arms toward me and told me: "Come into my Will, even for one instant, and you will see the great difference."I found myself in Jesus. My tiny atom was swimming in the Eternal Volition. And since this Eternal Volition is one single Act that contains, altogether, all the acts, past, present and future - as I was in the Eternal Volition, I took part in that Act which contains all acts, as much as it is possible for creature. I took part also in the acts which do not exist, and which must yet exist, until the end of the centuries, and until God will be God. And for these acts too I loved Him, I thanked Him, I blessed Him, etc. There was no act which escaped me. I took the Love of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and I made it mine, just as their Will was mine; and I gave it to Them as if it were my own... How happy I was to be able to give Them their own Love as though my own! And how They found their full contentment and complete outpouring in receiving their own Love from me, as if It were mine! But who can say everything? I lack the words.Now, blessed Jesus told me: "Have you seen what living in my Will is? It is to disappear and to enter the sphere of Eternity; it is to penetrate into the Omnipotence of the Eternal One - into the Uncreated Mind, and take part in everything and in each divine act, as much as it is possible for creature. It is to make use, even while on earth, of all the divine qualities; it is to hate evil in a divine way. It is spreading oneself to everyone without exhaustion, because the Will which animates this creature is divine. It is the Sanctity which is not yet known, which I will make known, and which will place the last adornment, the most beautiful and the brightest among all other sanctities. It will be the crown and the fulfillment of all the other sanctities. Now, to live united with Me is not to disappear - two beings appear together; but one who does not disappear cannot enter into the sphere of Eternity to take part in all the divine acts. Ponder well, and you will see the great difference."