“Casting Your Cares upon the Lord”

I would like to suggest a systematic, responsible and practical way to apply St. Peter’s advice that “we cast our cares upon the Lord” for he cares for us. For me this involves a series of steps in problem-solving.

To “process” any human problem simply means submitting it to a personal “think-tank”. To succeed in this, the problem-bearer might wish to apply the following processing routine. But he or she has to be forewarned that “brainstorming” alone is not sufficient. One has to pray and tap on the spiritual resources one has already acquired. Everyone has a God-given or innate “spark” of the light in him by simply being born. According to the prologue in John’s Gospel, the “Light” is given to each person who comes into this world. A person may reject this light, but this light can never be extinguished, even in the deepest darkness. And, the deeper the darkness, the deeper must be the search for this “light,” that is Jesus reaching out to us from the depths.

In my 60s, I have learned that problems in general revolve around “losses”. Any experiences of loss in money, health, reputation, friends or relationship of any kind, whether the loss or diminishment thereof is real or imagined, is experienced first as a form of an “attack” to one’s ego. And any attack is normally neutralized by an act of defense or aggression. One does not normally, for example, offer the other cheek at once, or walk the extra mile. These are the results of a series of processing activities I suggest should be applied first.

Step one – When one is confronted with a problem, the first step is to objectify it, or to detach it from the self or ego. To objectify means to make sure that emotions do not play an undue role in its analysis. The aggrieved ego must be put in a quiet or inactive mode. There is a saying, “Try to be philosophical about it.” It simply means not to panic and instead to be “stoical” or detached. But being calm or “cool” is not enough. One has to enter into a deep communion with God in prayer, not just once, but repeatedly. It might take time to quiet the mind and the heart, but it must be done as the necessary first step.

Step two – This second step is the exercise of inner stillness. This is a pre-requisite for the practice of mental prayer proper. Mental prayer can be wordless, or could also start with a Scripture passage or a saying of our Lord. This prolonged dwelling on a passage from the sacred scriptures elevates continuously the mind and heart to God, which is what a prayer is. This activity is best done in front of the Blessed Sacrament, or a Crucifix. It is like immersing oneself in the presence of an all-knowing and all-powerful God to whom nothing is hidden and to whom no task is impossible. It is surrendering oneself to the Highest and most potent source of power, a power who is personally interested in us, who provides for our every need big or small, even before we ask, a God so good he can draw good out of evil and who makes everything new again.

Step three – This step also takes place in front of a Crucifix or before the Blessed Sacrament. Exposure to or presence before the Blessed Sacrament or crucifix, is itself an act of worship. Before the Blessed Sacrament one adores the face of God Himself. This act unmasks one’s opaqueness and creates room for total authenticity. It is here that one is given the chance to see the problem in its totality, contextualizing it first in the sea of common humanity, then seeing the finger of God in the process. The purpose of this step is to further detach the problem from the hurt ego. It does not ignore nor dilute the problem, but universalizes it, humanizing it profoundly before surrendering it to God. It is at this stage that one realizes that a cross is also a gift, a burden that is light, an invitation to love deeply and serenely. This is not just an attempt to gracefully “spiritualize” the problem, but to open it to the solution only God can inspire. It puts it in its truest existential situation where love alone can be its ultimate solution. And in this stage, God speaks to the soul and offers a solution. This may perhaps be considered a fruit of the Holy Spirit, our Advocate, who gives us His own defense or answer to our deepest need.

Final step – Then finally you conclude by symbolically “casting” your cares upon the Lord, for He cares for you. You can do this by writing out all the details of your problem then symbolically casting your cares upon the Lord by burning the paper on which you wrote out your problem.

You can also do this by making a box as described in the figure below. The latter I have seen in a sample given to me by a cancer patient several years ago. In this final step, it is suggested that you write out, like the former method, all of the details of the problem you have just processed. Then simply write out the subject of the problem on a piece of paper and deposit that note into the “O” of the GOD BOX and it no longer belongs to you. The box is designed so that it cannot be opened, thus, you cannot take the problem back. You have then cast your cares upon the Lord. Your problem no longer belongs to you alone. Whatever God inspires you to do in connection with the problem take it as an advice coming from Him. But always be calm and serene. God is the Lord of history, the Lord of the past, the present and the future, the Lord of your life.

Only God may open this box.

Her stabat was a fulfillment of her fiat. She took the place of the the Father in His “absence” and “abandonment” of His Son. Her tough love made tender the Father’s tough love.