The Power of a Smile
Posted by Elizabeth Foss in Faith on Thursday, April 22, 2010 8:00 AM
Think: “A smile is one of nature’s best means of making people happy. One of the most delightful factors in a personality is a real heartwarming smile that comes from within. Actions speak louder than words, and a smile says, “I like you. You make me happy. I am glad to see you.” If you do not feel like smiling, smile anyway; make yourself smile.”
—Fr. Lovasik
Pray: Blessed Mother, you have been called “Our Lady of the Smile.” I want that title, too! Please ask the Holy Spirit on my behalf to remind me to smile as sweetly and kindly as you would.
Act: In May of 1883, St. Therese of the Child Jesus was a bedridden child who was very ill. She faced a statue of the Blessed Mother that was near her bed and prayed for cure. “Suddenly,” Therese writes, “Mary’s face radiated kindness and love.” Therese was healed and the statue has since been called Our Lady of the Smile. On Mary’s face that day was an expression of beauty, bounty, tenderness, and, above all, “a charming and enchanting smile.” That smile has become a simple summary of St. Therese’s Marian devotion. We are all wounded, all in need of healing. A smile has such a therapeutic effect, both on the person smiling and the person receiving the smile. Challenge yourself to genuinely and tenderly smile early and often today.
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