Blessed are they...

The measure of Love is Love without measure. -- St Augustine

For me yesterday was such a beautiful and blessed day. Not only was it Divine Mercy Sunday, but it was the beatification of the late, great John Paul II. To me he was an example of great holiness, and a role model on how to love others. I am in awe of the fact that I lived during the life of a soon to be saint as well as I got to be in so many places to see him and experience him first hand. He  proved that sainthood is what we are all called to--that it is not left to the elite or just to the religious but is offered to all, The harvest is rich, but the laborers few.. (Mt 9:37) 

He proved that sainthood takes a willingness to be open to the call that Christ calls us to. He showed us that sainthood takes a boldness to always stand by truth, no matter the circumstance. And as he repeated on several occasions, he proved that a life lived totally for Christ is one that is lived in love and not in fear, Be not afraid. He would echo so often in many homilies. Knowing that in every moment in our walk with Christ we would stumble or be tempted to give up.  That the cross would get too heavy or that there would be  moments of darkness. He reminded us to stay strong and walk confidently in Christ's Love, You are not the sum of your sins, you are the sum of the Father's love. 
Blessed John Paul II was a man of great faith, courage, boldness and love and truly walked in the light of Christ.  Near the end of his life, he walked his calvary as he was  sick with Parkinson's. You will always see him  in pictures with a crucifix in hand...speaking to us that the cross is where you need to find strength, the cross is your example of love, and the cross is what carries us more then we carry it. 
I am so grateful that despite all that is going on in this crazy world of ours, we are given these people of hope and peace and light.  These people of encouragement, to continue running the race that God has set before each one of us. 
Below, I have an included  an excerpt of the words of  Blessed John Paul II, spoken on World Youth Day 2000. 

Dear young people, faced with these great mysteries, learn to lift  your hearts in an attitude of contemplation. Stop and look with wonder  at the infant Mary brought into the world, wrapped in swaddling clothes  and laid in a manger: the infant is God himself who has come among us.  Look at Jesus of Nazareth, received by some and scorned by others,  despised and rejected: He is the Saviour of all. Adore Christ, our  Redeemer, who ransoms us and frees us from sin and death: He is  the living God, the source of Life. Contemplate and reflect! God created us to share in his very  own life; he calls us to be his children, living members of the mystical  Body of Christ, luminous temple of the Spirit of Love. He calls us to  be his: he wants us all to be saints. Dear young people, may it be your  holy ambition to be holy, as He is holy. You will ask me: but is it possible today to be saints? If we had  to rely only on human strength, the undertaking would be truly impossible.  You are well aware, in fact, of your successes and your failures; you are  aware of the heavy burdens weighing on man, the many dangers which  threaten him and the consequences caused by his sins.  At times we may be gripped by discouragement and even come to  think that it is impossible to change  anything either in the world or in ourselves. Although the journey is difficult, we can do everything in the One  who is our Redeemer. Turn then to no one, except Jesus. Do not look  elsewhere for that which only He can give you, because  "of all the names in the world given to men this is the only  one by which we can be saved” (Acts 4:12).  With Christ, saintliness - the divine plan for every  baptized person - becomes possible.  Rely on Him; believe in the invincible power of the  Gospel and place faith as the  foundation of your hope. Jesus walks with you,  he renews your heart and  strengthens you with the vigour of his Spirit. Young people of every continent, do not be afraid  to be the saints of the new  millennium! Be contemplative, love prayer; be coherent  with your faith and  generous in the service of your brothers and sisters, be  active members of the  Church and builders of peace. To succeed in this demanding  project of life,  continue to listen to His Word, draw strength from the Sacraments,  especially  the Eucharist and Penance. The Lord wants you to be  intrepid apostles of his  Gospel and builders of a new humanity. In fact, how could you  say you believe in God made man without taking a firm position against all that destroys the human  person and the family? If you believe that Christ has revealed the  Father’s love for every person, you cannot fail to strive to contribute  to the building of a new world, founded on the power of love and  forgiveness, on the struggle against injustice and all physical, moral  and spiritual distress, on the orientation of politics, economy,  culture and technology to the service of man and his integral development.

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