This new year, which many hoped would make an end to the infamous 2020, year from hell, has begun disappointingly, to say the least. Not to be a Debby Downer, but come on – tearing off a calendar page doesn’t have the power to fix the many problems at hand. NOTHING is that easy, nor should it be. Our slow steady abandonment of natural law, rejection of common sense, and willfully desiring to put our own needs and desires before others, and especially over God’s will, has always been man’s downfall. History shows that without God, we WILL crash and burn, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

I am a big believer in Behavior Modification which basically means, if we do bad things then we suffer the consequences. If we do good things, we reap rewards. That’s how we learn to accept and do good and reject and not do bad. That’s how parents, out of love, teach their children right from wrong. What we are seeing in our world is the result of decades of us running a mock like children in need of a whole lot of time-out. Any good parent would desire to take control of the recalcitrant, super-speed train that his children are on to save them from the train wreck awaiting them. And God is a good parent. He’s the best parent. God’s chastisements are not a bad thing. They are painful, but they really are both just and merciful. Consequences for our actions make us learn. They cause us to change, to go from vice to virtue. And we need to change because we can’t go on like this. We’ve lost our understanding of what it is to be truly human. God respects our free will. We want to do things our way, and He lets us. Now we can see the consequences of our choices. We reject His laws, and we become lawless. We reject His love, and we are loveless. We’ve recreated the image of the human person into our distorted understanding of who we are and what we are. We act, not like the human beings created in His image and likeness, but rather resemble something from the animal kingdom which fights for its own desires and survival above all, and not for the good of ourselves and our neighbors. This is what we wanted, and this is what we got, along with the consequences.

I think it is only through the grace of God, and most likely, only through direct and Divine Intervention, that we will get through this to the other side – a more peaceful, beautiful, and Godly world. I want that so badly my heart jumps at the thought!!!

So, what can we do to not just ride the wave to a better tomorrow, but also flourish in these times of turmoil? How can we find rest in the unrest of our times? I’ve always been drawn to Rudyard Kipling’s poem, If. It is something that resonated with me and my fondness of behavior modification techniques. When I first read IF in high school, I thought that Kipling’s words held valuable lessons on how to deal with difficult days.

“If you can keep your head when all about you

Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,

If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,

But make allowance for their doubting too;

If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,

Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies,

Or being hated, don’t give way to hating…”

Kipling goes on to say, if you can do all these things, then

“Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,

And which is more, you will be a man, my son!”

What!? That’s our motivation?! That’s flourishing?! I don’t know about you, but that’s not going to cut it for me anymore. I don’t want the Earth and everything in it. It’s a mess! I don’t want to be a son or daughter of the earth. I want to be a child of God. I want heaven! Or at least until then while I’m still alive, I want His will done on Earth as it is in Heaven. That’s not too much to ask for, right? Actually, that’s what we ask for every time we pray the prayer that Jesus taught us. “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done.” That’s what God wants for us too.

Now, THE GOOD NEWS, which at first might not look or feel too good…

I believe we are in a time when our most patient and merciful God is saying, ‘Enough is enough! I can’t watch my children suffer in their muck any longer, lest I lose them all to their destructive desires and ways. They need to see and feel the results of their actions. They need to want better. They need to want to clean up their acts.’

Our Lord knows that His children are better at making messes than cleaning them up, so He has sent in His cleaning crew, headed by – His mother, and assisted by the angels and saints. Because, well, that’s their job – to pray for us, to inspire us, and to help us live in His Divine Will. Who could do a better job than this Heavenly company, led by their boss, Mother Mary? All moms know how to clean out every crack and crevice. Not one dust-bunny or dirt-demon can remain when mom’s in charge! Our entire world needs this power-washing more than ever! This job has always been assigned to Mary. This is the task for which God has prepared her Immaculate Heart. Our mess began with Adam and Eve’s disobedience (Gen. 3:6). But Mary’s whispered Fiat, her “Yes, let it be done unto me according to Thy Will.” (Luke 1:38) is our help. She not only played a vital role in bringing Our Savior into the world, but she will also crush the head of the serpent (Gen. 3:15) at the triumph of her Immaculate Heart, promised at Fatima.

I believe that what we are seeing, in our country and our Church, shows that Our Lady has started the cleaning process. When Mama has had enough of telling her kids to clean up and they don’t, then it’s time for her to take charge, and things start flying. Mirjana Soldo says it best*.

“I can compare it to spring cleaning. If I want my home to be spotless, I know that I have to first turn everything upside down. I move the sofa, I stack the chairs on the table, I open all the cupboards—nothing remains in its place. My home is thrown into chaos and disorder. It’s unrecognizable to my children and the peace is gone. But then I clean under everything. I wipe away all the grime. I put every piece of furniture back to its rightful place. In the end, my home is more immaculate than ever. This is how I see all the confusion in the world today. This is how I see Our Lady’s apparitions and God’s plan. A truly clean house starts with a big mess.

                                                                                       Task completed.

We know we need this major cleaning! It’s obvious. The image of God has been hidden under the debris of sin for too long now, and His Mama, filled with His grace (Luke 1:28) is kicking up the filth, to expose and remove it.

We will be part of the process either by helping or hindering Mama’s efforts.

Mirjana Soldo asks us in her book, *My Immaculate Heart Will Triumph by Mirjana Soldo

“Will you be like most children who stand back while Mom cleans, or will you not be afraid to get your hands dirty and help her? Like Our Lady said in one of her messages, “I desire that, through love, our hearts may triumph together.”

May the triumph of her heart begin with you.”*

Some ways to join the clean-up team:

Develop a willingness to grow in love and appreciation for God

Love the truth, and speak it in love

Pray the Rosary Daily

Pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet in reparation for the sins committed by our country

Lead a Sacramental life

Stay away from all serious sins and try to avoid venial sins

Go to Confession monthly

Establish a relationship of trust and appreciation with your guardian angel

Get to know and love St. Joseph

Consecrate yourself to Mary

Offer up not only your hardships, frustrations, and pain to be one with Christ’s sacrifice, but unite your joys and hopes with His Most Sacred Heart

Stop seeing your life through the eyes of the media

Strengthen your relationships with others both on earth and in heaven

Forgive and accept forgiveness

Treat others how we want to be treated

Listen

Love (wanting the true good for ourselves and others)

What are some of your ideas?