I have been laid a bit low the last few days with some kind of infection in my respiratory system. The doctor gave me antibiotics and I am confident I will be feeling better pretty soon. In the meantime, what is one to do? Type A’s don’t generally do well with lack of activity, and this particular Type A (me) chomps at the bit even from a sickbed. 

Does a physical malady have to put us out of commission? Or, does the Divine Physician sometimes “prescribe” a down time for some particular benefit?

Given the fact that nothing happens outside of God’ permissive will, we have to acknowledge that even a bout with the flu or the common cold is an opportunity for grace. So — how do we make good use of this time?

First, endure our discomfort redemptively:  Through the guidance and direction of the Holy Spirit, our Catholic faith offers us a rich theology of suffering. Baptized in Christ Jesus, we are incorporated into the Paschal Mystery — Our Lord’s own passion, death, resurrection. Simply stated, our baptism leads us into the way of the Cross and the ultimate triumph of Jesus Christ over sin and death. Every malady, trauma, tribulation, reversal, sadness of heart, betrayal, strife, sickness and suffering becomes an entry way to grace and transformation — for us and for others — when we unite it to Our Lord’s Passion.

This is why St. Paul could exclaim to the Colossians, “Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I complete what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the Church (1:24).”

Does this mean that Christ’s sufferings were not sufficient for salvation? No, of course not. But, as John Paul II so eloquently stated in Salvifici Doloris, though Christ achieved the Redemption completely … he did not bring it to a close… It seemed to be part of the very essence of Christ’s redemptive suffering that this suffering requires to be unceasingly completed (No. 24).    

It is here that we find a magnanimous mission when we are struck low. In some mysterious and ineffable way, when we unite our sufferings to the passion and death of Christ, we participate in His redemptive work and become a conduit of redeeming grace in the world — even if our suffering is no more than a stubbed toe. All we need do is offer it with a holy intention of the heart.

Secondly, pray, pray, pray: Fortify our good intention to suffer in union with Christ through prayer. The Rosary is particularly efficacious and a helpful prayer when we are infirm or experiencing emotional distress. While the Rosary is primarily a prayer of meditation, its soothing rhythm can take us to the heights of contemplation as we consider the mysteries of Christ’s life. Asking Our Lady to intercede with us also helps make our prayer effective and efficient.

I have personally found conversation with God extremely beneficial when dealing with a physical sickness — especially in the wee hours of the night when I cannot sleep or my sleep is disturbed by strange dreams or as the cover of night seems to magnify my travail. In these moments, I talk to God right out loud. I tell Him of my sorrow, my worry, my insufficiency, my weakness of spirit. I simply “talk it all out.” And then, I strive to listen for the voice of the Lord which is a still small whisper in the howl of the storm.

Aspirations that flow from the heart should be the salt of our day. “Jesus I trust in You.” “God the Father, have mercy on me.” “Come, Holy Spirit, renew me and restore me.” “Our Lady help of all Christians, pray for me.” “Angel of God, help me.” Such sentiments prayed with faith often bring an immediate consolation since God always makes haste to help us.

Finally, ask the Holy Spirit to “tuck” you into the heart of the Blessed Mother. Who doesn’t want their mother with them when they are suffering. I know of no better “place” to go than into the very heart that first conceived our Lord.

Three, examine your conscience and make good resolutions. Every illness, great or small, and every other form of suffering, too, reminds us of our mortality and our total dependence on God. For that reason, each and every tribulation can aid us in the acquisition of humility — if we let it. Taking a good account of our life, past and present, can be a valuable exercise when trouble strikes. And it affords the perfect opportunity to make good resolutions about those tendencies and behaviors that need to come into conformity with the will of God. I have often found myself planning a realistic strategy to wage a “holy war” against the most pernicious of my sins during times of illness or strife and seek to follow them up with the Sacrament of Reconciliation as soon as I can.

Fourth, do some holy reading when you feel able.  No one likes to suffer but suffering is part of the consequences of original sin. We are all going to suffer. The question, therefore, should not be “Will I?” but rather, “What will I do when I do?” In the midst of the tribulation, we can gain great help and insight by the witnesses of the saints. If you are up to it, reading a good biography of a saint or something the saint himself wrote, can fill us with a holy zeal to stay the course in the midst of our affliction. If we are open and receptive to grace, we may well find ourselves in deep prayer as we consider the operations of the Holy Spirit in the saint’s life, and  we sometimes discover a new facility to patiently embrace our own suffering.

Fifth, rest in the Lord. Both the spirit and the body are refreshed by rest. Our time of repose can be a holy time when we commit even that to Our Lord. I have a priest friend who asks the Holy Spirit to work in him and through him even as he sleeps, and offers every beat of his heart in union with the Sacred Heart. What a good prayer! In holy slumber, great work can be accomplished in us through the grace of God.

By viewing our time of illness or travail with a supernatural outlook and approaching it with a sense of gratitude and mission, we need never be “under it.” Rather, we can be “overcomers” in union with Christ Jesus.

One final word — drink plenty of liquids, take your medication, and remember to: