"When Grace Is Greater Than Our Weakness" Artwork

"Your Faith Anew!"

Your Faith Anew! exists to help souls grow in their knowledge of the Catholic Faith, strive to remain in a state of grace, and encounter the transforming joy of the Gospel. Its mission is simple yet eternal: to save souls, glorify God, and become saints.

Hosted by David Russell, this daily reflection podcast draws deeply from Sacred Scripture, the Catechism of the Catholic Church, and the writings of the Servant of God, Luisa Piccarreta—especially The Book of Heaven—guiding listeners into a deeper understanding of living in the Divine Will.

David is the author of four spiritually rich works: Magi Theology: The Essence of Illusion, The Little Magician – Discovers Bigger and Better, Our Pilgrimage with the Pilgrim Virgin, and his newest release, Our Mother in the Divine Will. With a lifelong fascination for the mystical, David discovered a profound connection between the art of illusion and deeper spiritual realities—an insight that inspired both his theological and children’s writings. His work Magi Theology received both the Nihil Obstat and Imprimatur from the Diocese of Knoxville.

In 2010, David was introduced to the writings of Luisa Piccarreta, which deeply resonated with his own spiritual insights. This encounter helped shape the foundation of his ministry.

In 2017, he founded the Your Faith Anew! prayer and study group to help Catholics rediscover and fall in love with their Faith. At the heart of his message is this conviction:

“The Catholic Faith prepares us to receive the Gift of Living in the Divine Will—and this Gift enables us to live our Faith in a divine manner most pleasing to God.”

Join us daily as we seek not only to understand our Faith—but to live it fully, joyfully, and in union with the Divine Will.

Song: Buddy Comfort - vocals and guitar from the album, "Brother Sun, Sister Moon", www.buddycomfort.com

All Episodes

"Your Faith Anew!"

"When Grace Is Greater Than Our Weakness"

August 24, 2026 • David Russell

0:00 | 10:43

NEW AUDIOBOOK! "LIVING IN DIVINE WILL - Returning to the Purpose of Our Creation" click here

August 24, 1900 – Volume 3

Luisa writes,

Having spent one day being restless, I felt all full of temptations and sins. Oh God, what a harrowing pain it is to offend You! I did as much as I could to remain in God, to resign myself to His Holy Will, to offer Him that very restless state for love of Him, to not pay attention to the enemy, showing highest indifference, so that I would not incite him myself to tempt me more. But in spite of all this, I could not help hearing the murmuring that the enemy provoked around me. So, finding myself in my usual state, I did not dare to desire my beloved Jesus, so ugly and miserable did I see myself. But, always benign with this sinner, without my asking He came, and as though compassionating me, told me: “My daughter, courage, do not fear. Don’t you know that certain cold and mighty waters are more powerful in purging one of the slightest spot than fire itself? And then, everything turns into good for one who really loves Me.” Having said this, He disappeared, leaving me reassured, yes, but weak, as if I had suffered a fever.

– Servant of God, Luisa Piccarreta

Buddy Comfort – vocals and guitar from the album Brother Sun, Sister Moon, www.buddycomfort.com, words and music by Donovan Leitch.

Support the show

SPEAKER_00 0:06

If you want your dream to be, build it slow and surely. Small beginning, greater and heartfelt work grows purely.

SPEAKER_01 0:25

Welcome. This is David Russell and Your Faith Anew. Daily Reflections guiding you to live in the divine will. Today's reflection is from the Book of Heaven by the servant of God Louisa Picaretta, august twenty fourth, nineteen hundred, volume three. Let us begin in the will and name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Heavenly Father, we come before you aware of our weakness, yet confident in your infinite mercy. When our hearts grow discouraged or we become burdened by our own imperfections, remind us that your grace is always greater than our failures. Teach us to trust you more than we trust our emotions, to surrender every trial into your loving hands, and to remain faithful even when we cannot clearly perceive your presence. May every difficulty become an opportunity to abandon ourselves more completely in your divine will, knowing that you are always working for the good of those who love you. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. A reading from the book of the Prophet Zechariah, chapter four, verse six. Then he said to me, This is the word of the Lord to Zerubabel, not by might and not by power, but by my spirit, says the Lord of hosts. The catechism of the Catholic Church teaches in paragraph two seventy three Only faith can embrace the mysterious ways of God's almighty power. This faith glories in its weaknesses in order to draw to itself Christ's power. The Virgin Mary is the supreme model of this faith, for she believed that nothing will be impossible with God, and was able to magnify the Lord, for he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name. Before we listen to today's passage from the Book of Heaven, let us open our hearts to discover how unwavering trust allows God's grace to accomplish what our own strength never could. Louisa writes Having spent one day being restless, I felt all full of temptations and sins. Oh God, what a harrowing pain it is to offend you. I did as much as I could to remain in God, to resign myself to his holy will, to offer him that very restless state for love of him, to not pay attention to the enemy, showing highest indifference, so that I would not entice him myself to tempt me more. But in spite of all this, I could not help hearing the murmuring that the enemy provoked around me. So, finding myself in my usual state, I did not dare to desire my beloved Jesus, so ugly and miserable did I see myself, but always benign with this sinner, without my asking he came, and as though compassionating me told me My daughter, courage, do not fear. Don't you know that certain cold and mighty waters are more powerful in purging one of the slightest spot than fire itself? And then everything turns into good for one who really loves me. Having said this, he disappeared, leaving me reassured, yes, but weak, as if I had suffered a fever. A great temptation in the spiritual life is not simply the temptation to sin, but the temptation to lose confidence in God's love because we recognize our own weakness. We can become so focused on our imperfections that we begin to believe we are defined by them. Yet the Christian life is not built upon our perfection. It's built upon God's faithfulness. Living in the divine will invites us to look beyond ourselves and fix our gaze upon the one whose mercy never fails. Our weaknesses should become places of encounter rather than places of despair. They remind us that holiness is not self achievement, but divine transformation. The more we depend upon God, the more we make room for Him to accomplish His work within us. There are days when prayer feels dry, our emotions are unsettled, or our minds seem filled with distractions. These moments don't necessarily indicate that we are moving away from God. Very often they become opportunities to choose Him with greater freedom. Love is purified when it perseveres without relying upon consolation. The divine will teaches us to offer everything to the Father, not only our successes, but also our struggles. Every temptation resisted, every act of trust made in uncertainty, every quiet decision to remain faithful becomes another opportunity for Jesus to unite our small human acts with his perfect divine act. What appears insignificant on earth can become eternally fruitful when surrendered to God. Instead of measuring our spiritual life by how we feel, let us measure it by our willingness to keep saying yes to the Father. His grace is always at work, even when we can't perceive it. His providence is never interrupted by our weakness, and his love never grows weary of lifting us again. Today, if you find yourself discouraged, don't remain looking at yourself. Lift your eyes toward Christ. Entrust your heart to him once more. Every new act of confidence becomes another step into the freedom of living in His divine will, where hope is stronger than fear, mercy is greater than failure, and God's love has the final word. Let us pray. Lord Jesus, I place into your hands every weakness, every fear, every discouragement, and every hidden struggle within my heart. Teach me never to measure your love by my feelings or my failures, but by the endless mercy flowing from your sacred heart. Help me to surrender each moment into your divine will with peaceful confidence. Transform every trial into an opportunity to love you more faithfully, every temptation into a deeper act of trust, and every weakness into a place where your grace may shine. May my life proclaim that your power is made perfect through humble surrender, and may every heartbeat glorify the Father as your kingdom comes, and your will is done on earth as it is in heaven. Amen. Thank you for joining your faith anew today. Until tomorrow, stay in his will, and your faith will be made anew.