Source: https://www.bertha-dudde.org/en/proclamation/0998

0998 Spiritual poverty.... spiritual wealth.... earthly renunciation....

July 7, 1939: Book 19

It is an ineffable happiness when man's mind is focussed on the eternal and imperishable. All spirit of the present time only seeks the earthly and has become almost unsurpassable in its desire for the world; it almost never enters into a state of self-contemplation, and man remains superficial in his nature, full of lust and earthly-minded, and yet he must constantly realize his spiritual poverty, his empty inner life and his extremely endangered state of soul, and he must unwaveringly endeavour to free himself from this painful situation of the soul. Only he who desires God and His kingdom can be accepted into the circle of the knowledgeable and thus draw from the eternal fountain, and this spiritual knowledge is so immeasurably valuable as it immensely promotes the soul's higher development, and thus it also recognizes the uselessness of earthly life, even if it is not granted any bodily pleasures and joys in earthly life, it nevertheless has faith in immortality, in eternal life and its glory and can be called far richer and happier than it could ever be in earthly enjoyment. And all the power of the world cannot hand out what the lord God promises to His own, for it cannot give anything of itself that the lord does not give or that is His will from eternity; on the other hand, He will give His own an abundance of inner happiness and spiritual gifts and also an abundance of earthly possessions if the human being desires spiritual wealth and perseveres in love for the lord and his neighbour.... But how poorly the world will consider him.... How devastatingly small will be the successes a person has to show at the end of his days, and what a lack of spiritual wealth will characterize the uselessness of earthly life and what painful remorse such an imperfect soul will feel.... But heaven will be open to the earthly child who has renounced all earthly pleasures and turned towards eternity. Life on earth is truly short.... what a person has lacked in this life will be given to him in abundance in the next, and he will find priceless possessions there again if he has collected them on earth and thought of the life to come. Man asks the spirit from God about things that are still incomprehensible to him, and the spirit wants to bring him understanding. However, if he does not find the ground prepared, he cannot receive an answer, for in order to receive it he needs the will to renounce earthly enjoyment and only seek spiritual edification. This replaces a thousandfold what he gives away, for earthly happiness is like foam, it fades away and leaves nothing behind that is of value for eternity. But spiritual endeavour gathers spiritual riches and stimulates the human being to penetrate spiritual knowledge ever more eagerly, and the divine blessing will not fail to materialize and such an earthly child will be provided for in abundance so that it need not live in want when it has left earthly life. For the lord will share His wealth of love with the one who desires Him and His love....

Amen

Translated by Doris Boekers