There are actually more than four dimensions in this world where you live. In addition to the three dimensions of space and the one of time, there is the dimension of openness to My Presence. This dimension transcends the others, giving you glimpses of heaven while you still reside on earth. This was part of My original design for mankind. Adam and Eve used to walk with Me in the garden, before their expulsion from Eden. I want you to walk with me in the garden of your heart, where I have taken up permanent residence (from Jesus Calling, May 24).
Every story in the Bible is told in the four dimensions of time and space in order to reveal something about the 5th dimension -- the story of our spirits in relationship to Jesus Christ. When Jesus told Nicodemus that we must be 'born again' in order to see the kingdom of heaven, this is what He was referring to -- the ability to enter the 5th dimension of openness to the Spirit of God. The physical world comes first: we are born into space and time and most of us continue to live in those dimensions without even being aware that there is yet a 5th dimension which influences and even controls the first four. Trying to control and manipulate the four dimensions which the world sees without the 5th dimension is like building the Tower of Babel. Built only on man's resources, without God's direction, it must eventually collapse.
For the past year and a half, I have been listening to a friend telling me of an abusive marriage of 46 years. "God has abandoned me," she has said over and over. "I have nothing and no one; my family will not help me. My husband has stolen my birth certificate and somehow had my social security cut off. He has repeatedly told me that he plans to destroy me. My lawyer will not return my calls and he does nothing. I have no resources and no recourse. I am stuck forever in this situation."
Even I, groaning for over a year in her pain and helplessness, was beginning to doubt that God was hearing her prayers. I could think of nothing else to tell her. She was unable to get a job because of her background and lack of computer skills, and there seemed to be no way out of this marriage. She could not afford to start over with another lawyer, and the one she had seemed to be inert -- maybe dead.
Last week, she called and told me that her lawyer had finally called and said a court date -- in abuse court -- had been set for this past Wednesday. "Abuse court!" she cried. "I know what that means: they will want us to go through counseling again! I cannot face this again. We went through counseling three years ago, and he lied over and over to the counselor, right in front of me -- and nothing changed." She was about to drop the whole process in hopelessness and helplessness. They had once before gone to a hearing officer for divorce, and nothing happened beyond that stage. I encouraged her not to drop the case, but to hope in God instead.
This past Wednesday, she discovered that the lawyers had come to an agreement and everything was settled: her husband has 30 days to get out of the house because of recognized abuse, and she will get the house plus a living allowance (he had cut off all her money and tied up everything in IRAs since her last attempt to break free of him). For the first time in 46 years, she has a chance to regain a sense of peace without fear. When she told me the news, I told her that I had been to Mass on Wednesday to pray for the outcome, and that I had discovered it was the feast of St. Rita of Cascia, who had herself lived with an abusive husband in the 14th century. I was amazed that after almost two years of no response and no action on the part of her lawyer, that he had finally done something on this particular day. Of course, I enlisted the prayers of St. Rita in this case.
When I told my friend about my discovery of St. Rita's feastday, she started to cry. It seems that several months ago, she had gone to confession and had told the priest about her situation. "For your penance," he told her, "I want to you begin praying to St. Rita of Cascia for her help. She too experienced what you are going through, so she will help you." On Tuesday, my friend, without knowing of course that Weds was the feastday of St. Rita, had cried out in fear of what the next day would bring: "St. Rita, you are doing nothing for me; I have asked over and over, and you are not helping me!" Little did she know what the next day would bring.
Had I not gone to Mass that morning, had I not read St. Rita's story in Give Us This Day, I would not have known to ask for her intercession, and I would not have known about the feastday being the same day as the court date. Suddenly, everything was now settled without months of fear, fighting, and screaming. Two years ago, my friend had attempted to get a divorce with no help from the 5th dimension, and she failed, only making the situation more desperate. Now, suddenly, and without her quite knowing how, she was free.
Thinking back on the events of Wednesday, I was somewhat amazed that more than a year and a half ago, the Holy Spirit prompted me to call this woman who I had not talked to in well over 25 years. Even though I could not help her at all in the 4 dimensions, and even though I have been crying and groaning with her in her helplessness all this time, now I see the hand of God at every step. All I could do -- and did do -- was to tell her not to give up, that God had a plan we could not see. I cannot tell how many times she was ready to drop the case because she had no hope or help, and had no money to hire another lawyer.
It took the 5th dimension--the communion of saints who were open to the Presence and Resources of God--- to deliver her from evil; the other 4 had no resources at all.
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