Megan Hjelmstad is a Catholic author, speaker, military veteran, wife, and mother. Her lifelong experience with chronic pain and illness has gifted her with an invaluable experience when it comes to suffering–and offering it up.
In her book “Offer It Up: Discovering the Power and Purpose of Redemptive Suffering,” Hjelmstad answers the all-too-popular question of how to offer up our own suffering for good.
In the chapter “How to ‘offer it up,’” Hjelmstad poses the question of how to practically invite the Lord into our suffering so that it becomes redemptive.
What does this look like on a daily basis?
“It’s important to grasp what this can look like on a daily basis and in an exceedingly feasible way, especially when your suffering is so acute that you can hardly string together two cohesive thoughts,” she writes.
This list of four ways to “Offer it Up” is loosely based on her writings:
1) “Lord, I offer this suffering for…”
Simply praying this prayer in the moment can be so powerful. She also provides the following options:
"God, I invite You into this suffering or I give this suffering to You, use it for good."
Hjelmstad writes that the Lord will apply this to a soul, whether you have someone in mind or not. She adds that even our thoughtful intent can be used if the words just cannot come to fruition.
2) Offering Ahead of Time
Hjelmstad suggests this option for when your sufferings may be too much to handle in the moment.
“You are free to make a plan in advance and offer your suffering even before it happens, knowing that God will honor your act of the will when any suffering comes to pass,” she says.
3) The Morning Offering
Hjelmstand explains that this is one of the easiest and most common ways to “offer it up.”
The following prayer was composed in 1844 by Father Francois Xavier Gautrelet. It is an incredible prayer to start your day with. It also suggests that we can not only offer up our sorrows, but also our joys!
O Jesus, through the Immaculate Heart of Mary,
I offer you my prayers, works, joys, and sufferings of this day
for all the intentions of your Sacred Heart
in union with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass throughout the world,
for the salvation of souls, the reparation of sins, the reunion of all Christians,
and in particular for the intentions of the Holy Father this month.
Amen.
4) Redemptive Routines and Tasks
This is such a great idea!
Hjelmstad reasons that “attaching a recurring offering to your daily schedule helps to make offering a reflexive habit.”
She gives an example of offering up certain days of the week for specific intentions, which allows for everything she does throughout the day to take on a greater purpose.
She explains how Saint Therese of Lisieux offered her time doing laundry at the convent for the bishops and cardinals of the Church! Hjelmstad also suggests that offering your least-preferred duties for a specific intention could make the task less daunting.
She concludes the chapter saying that offering her sufferings ahead of time helped her better spontaneously offer unforeseen suffering in the moment.
“The practical possibilities for offering our suffering are endless, and the graces are even more expansive. In prayer, you can invite the Lord to inspire you with your own helpful habits, tailored to your life and unique brand of suffering,” she says.
In a culture that often seeks to minimize or escape suffering, Hjelmstad provides a countercultural perspective that encourages readers to find value and purpose in the midst of their own sufferings.