Our King has at His disposal a number of gifts of incalculable value, and these He is ready to bestow on any one who will ask for them, and will observe certain conditions that He has laid down for the reception of them. These gifts are gifts that will never perish, but will always remain as priceless treasures to him who receives them. Our King purchased them for us at the price of His own blood. These gifts are the supernatural graces that He offers to all who are subject to His sway, and which He has bestowed so liberally on me.

These graces are of two kinds. Some are called actual graces, which prompt us to do some act which will increase our happiness in this life, will enable us to follow more closely in the footsteps of our King, and will procure for us a larger share of the rewards He has promised to give to all His faithful servants. These gifts of love He continually is offering to me. Yet, strange to say, I too often pass them by and reject them.

Our King does more than this. He offers to increase our likeness to Him and the glory and happiness we shall enjoy in Heaven, by a means which requires no exertion on our part. He offers to give us rich gifts of sanctifying grace, on the very simple condition that we present ourselves to one of His ministers, and receive from his hand some one of the Sacraments that our King instituted as channels by which grace is poured into the soul. We have simply to present ourselves in due dispositions and there flows of itself this living stream of grace. Oh, how generous is our King, and how ungrateful are we!