AtonalTimpanist

Someone once told me that following Jesus more closely and increasing their devotion/love for Him leads them to more loneliness and suffering in their life (which I don't doubt - i.e. Mother Teresa). They, therefore, don't want that and want to be an "average" Catholic; one who doesn't miss mass on Sundays, goes to confession once a month, and tries to live a better life, while understanding that living an "average" life still entails some suffering.

What would you say to this person?

We are running away from love, in these examples, because we are afraid of pain. It is natural to fear pain. But if you follow it to the extreme, you can see that it is not the healthiest way to live; and if we can stand to be a little bit brave by not hiding in our rooms and avoiding all pain, maybe we can stand to gradually become braver still.

That is an excellent point. I didn't even realize that the situation I described was equivalent to running away from love.

Thank you for sharing this.

Great - thank you!!