Even the most vile matter can be transformed

The greatness of sacrifice lies in its ability to bring about transformation. It is worth your while to meditate on this subject! Even the most vile matter can be transformed. I have often demonstrated this for you with the example of the dead wood used to make a fire. Imagine that within you there is dead wood, old, useless branches, in other words, thoughts, feelings and desires which paralyze you and work against your evolution. You can sacrifice them to produce heat and light. Why consider sacrifice as something sad or painful? On the contrary, we must see sacrifice as something joyous: it brings us warmth, it brings us light, and what could be more joyous than light? Life is a process of combustion. To stay alive, we must constantly maintain the fire within us. This combustion is a physical phenomenon, but it is also a spiritual reality. Every day we must burn certain material within us in order to produce heat and light.