From Ignatius of Loyola

In 1491, Inigo de Loyola was born in what is today known as Basque Country, in northern Spain. He eventually became a soldier, and won many battles as a knight in the service of his lord, the Viceroy of Navarre. However, when his lord's fortress in Pamplona came under siege in 1521, Inigo was struck by a cannonball, which wounded one leg and shattered the bones in the other.

Inigo had to undergo extremely painful surgical procedures to repair the damage, after which he was laid up in bed recovering for nearly a year. During that time, Inigo had little to do, and he spent much of his time daydreaming. He had always desired to be in the service of a noble king, and that is what had lead him to become a knight. Inigo felt that if he could serve a benevolent lord with courage and devotion, he would have found his life's calling. Thus, much of his daydreaming focused on gallant deeds and heroic triumph in service of an imaginary, noble lord, as well as wooing a beautiful woman. Inigo ultimately found, though, that these daydreams left him feeling empty and exhausted.

At some point, Inigo was given a copy of De Vita Christi, a book written about the life of Jesus, a man whom Inigo had heard about all his life, but had never taken an interest in. Inigo was amazed by the self-sacrifice of the Lord Jesus, and subsequently, he wanted to read books on the saints-- those who had followed Jesus Christ selflessly, even to the death. As Inigo read more and more about Jesus and those who followed him, he began to feel that he himself was a fraud, a worthless soldier who had only sought what would bring him glory and prestige. Inigo felt shame at the lives of the saints and their utter devotion to God, in the face of his self-serving devotion to the Viceroy of Navarre.

It was at this point Inigo realized that his lifelong desire to serve a benevolent lord wasn't an impossible dream, but instead was staring him in the face: there is no more benevolent lord than the Lord Jesus Christ.

Furthermore, Inigo realized that these desires weren't merely of his flesh, as he had formerly thought, but were in fact planted in his heart from childhood by God to lead Inigo to Him.

Inigo decided to dedicate his life to God, and to serve Him forever. Inigo understood that in order to serve God, he had to empty himself of himself. He eventually took the name Ignacio, after a famous saint whose example he wished to follow, and founded the Society of Jesus, which we know today as the Jesuits.

This man changed history. But how does one change the world for the glory of God? With an attitude like this:

"Take, O Lord, and receive my entire liberty, my memory, my understanding and my whole will. All that I am and all that I possess You have given me. I surrender it all to You to be disposed of according to Your will. Give me only Your love and Your grace; with these I will be rich enough, and will desire nothing more"

Conviction stirs my soul when I read this, and hopefully yours as well. If all Christians could have this attitude . . .