Let us be persuaded that in this vale of tears true peace of heart cannot be found except by those who endure and lovingly embrace their sufferings to please God. This is what comes of the state of corruption that has left us all infected by sin. The condition of the saints on earth is to suffer as they love; the condition of the saints in heaven is to enjoy as they love. Father Paul Segneri the younger once wrote to one of his penitents to encourage her in her suffering. He advised her to have these words inscribed at the base of her crucifix: “THAT IS HOW ONE LOVES.”

Not just suffering but the will to suffer for the love of Jesus Christ is the surest sign that a soul loves him. “And what greater gain,” said Saint Teresa, “can there be than to have some proof that we are pleasing to almighty God?” Alas, the majority of people are dismayed at the mere mention of the cross, of humiliation and pain. Still there are not a few loving souls who find all their happiness in suffering, and who would be almost inconsolable were they to pass their time on earth without suffering. “Looking at Jesus crucified,” said one devout person, “makes the cross so lovable to me that I think I could never be happy without suffering; the love of Jesus Christ is all I need.” Here is how Jesus advises everyone who would follow him: “Let them deny themselves and take up their cross daily” (Luke 9:23). But it must be taken up and carried, not by constraint or with repugnance, but with humility, patience, and love.

- pg 49  The Practice of the Love of Jesus Christ by Saint Alphonsus Liguori