3 Things We Can Learn from the Little Flower
In her childlike, joyful love, St. Thérèse truly became the Little
Flower.
St. Thérèse of Lisieux is undoubtedly one of the Church’s most
cherished saints. All of the saints are precious to us, but there are things
about the Little Flower that makes her personable, relatable, and
understandable. One could write volumes about her – indeed, there already are
volumes written about her. Right now, however, I’m thinking of three things in
particular that we can learn from her an implement in our own lives
First, a question. Why
is St. Thérèse known as the “Little Flower?’
She saw herself as like
the simple wildflowers in forests and fields. They’re often unnoticed by
others, yet they grow and give glory to God. She saw herself as simple and
hidden, but blooming where God had planted her.
In her autobiography,
“Story of a Soul,” she wrote:
Jesus set before me the
book of nature. I understand how all the flowers God had created are beautiful,
how the splendor of the rose and the whiteness of the lily do not take away the
perfume of the violet or the delightful simplicity of the daisy. I understand
that if all flowers wanted to be roses, nature would lose her springtime
beauty, and the fields would no longer be decked out with little wild flowers.
So it is in the worlds of souls, Jesus’ garden. He has created smaller ones and
those must be content to be daisies or violets destined to give joy to God’s
glances when he looks down at his feet. Perfection consists in doing his will,
in being what he wills us to be.
And so what can we learn
from the Little Flower?
Childlikeness
In referring to herself,
St. Thérèse used the image of a child’s ball. She yearned to be the little
plaything of the Child Jesus. “I told him not to use me as a valuable toy
children are content to look at but dare not touch, but to use me like a ball
of no value which he could throw to the ground, push with his foot, pierce,
leave in a corner, or press to his heart if it pleased him.”
The Little Flower’s
childlikeness was a mature one, born of great strength, self-surrender, and
selflessness. Her childlikeness was tested and purified in the hard struggles
of life, a heroic sanctity. From her childlikeness sprang her “Little Way,” her
method of doing the ordinary things with extraordinary love. Additionally, St.
Thérèse’s prayer life was uncomplicated. Instead of long involved prayers, she
preferred to speak plainly and directly to God and Mother Mary.
Joy
The Little Flower
rejoiced in her imperfections, embracing them as a means by which she could
draw closer to God. For this, she used the image of an elevator. In her
imperfections, she was too small to climb the stairway of perfection and so she
needed an elevator – Jesus’ arms – to raise her up.
Despite her advancing
tuberculosis, St. Thérèse maintained unaffected cheerfulness, using puns,
tricks, mimickings, and jokes about herself and the doctor’s inability to help
her as a way of bringing cheer to others. Her concern was for the pain of
others rather than her own.
Love
St. Thérèse didn’t
just love, she loved “unto
folly.” Her love for God and for others had no limits; she lived for Jesus
alone.
In “Story of a Soul,”
she wrote:
It seems to me that if
all creatures had received the same graces I received, God would be feared by
none but would be loved to the point of folly; and through love, not through fear, no one would ever consent to
cause him any pain.
In her childlike, joyful
love, St. Thérèse truly became the Little Flower. She left her “Little Way” as
a testimony and also as an example for us to follow as we make our own little
way to the arms of Jesus.
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