Take Custody of the Senses

Composed by: Br. Dominic

Take custody of the senses. If you find that your eyes are wandering and leading your imagination to places it shouldn’t go, then take courage, man of God, and look away, lest you lead yourself to sin. Self-control with self-mastery is the ultimate goal. Remember that the reason why you are controlling your senses is so that you can offer them to the glory of God the Father. Let your senses and the totality of your being praise the Lord; for he has blessed us with these, that we may experience a foretaste of the joy to come in anticipation of the kingdom. We can taste, see, smell, touch, feel and hear good and beautiful things. All of these things were made for our good. Look higher and stand taller for we are called to experience something more than this world can offer. God calls us in union with Him. He desires our heart and our attention, for He looks longingly at us, His beloved. And when He speaks, it is the truth which calls to the heart, an ineffable and irresistible notion, which causes us to move and have our being.  
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Therefore, direct your senses to Him, Who loves us so. For love and goodness Himself was made manifest through the mystery of the Incarnation. The Word was made flesh for us to hear, taste, see, touch and feel the goodness of God in our very lives. The very being of God is presented to us in such a way that we can experience him now, today and forever. So gaze on to keep your eyes up front. Find yourself and encounter the piercing image of Love Divine, laid bare for you to see. Jesus, my Jesus, You Who are the Eucharist, true Thanksgiving, of which I lovingly partake. Oh God, how You love us through your Son is a glorious and magnificent mystery! Jesus, Bread of Life, You lead us to the Father and the promise of the Kingdom; help us to never stray from You. Help us focus on what is above, so that we can see, in love, what we have here below.