John 10:18. "No one takes [my life] from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again; this charge I have received from my Father."

Jesus was and always is in total control. He would not be arrested, beaten, mocked, and crucified until the time came for those things to happen. When He was, it was because He allowed Himself to be, knowing that this was His Father's plan and that He had the power to take his life back up again. This is of such comfort to me, it reinforces all of God's other messages of trust and surrender in which I have been finding solace over the last few years.

The years since 2020 have been traumatic and upsetting for just about everyone, myself very much included, but during the turmoil, I have leaned heavily on God's many messages of love and trust. Jesus tells us all the time to "Be Not Afraid", why, then, do I allow myself to be afraid? The Novena of Surrender continuously tells us not to worry, and, in fact, that we are going against our required surrender when we do; Abandonment to Divine Providence, which was a lifeline for me, delivers the same message; as do the devotions of Divine Mercy and Divine Will. All of God's messages are asking us to trust Him, even in the midst of suffering, as Jesus did in Gethsemane, and as Mary did her whole life.

Just as Jesus has power over His life, God has power over ours, and He knows exactly what He's doing. Nothing happens without His permission. Any evil or hardships that He is permitting in the world or in our lives are necessary for the fruition of His plan. We know His plan is for good - the salvation of the whole world - so why do we worry? All shall be well, even if, for a little while, we must suffer certain pains and hardships.