I

O God! Though I have endured hundreds of trials and tribulations, and have even come close to death, they have allowed me to truly know You and gain supreme salvation. If Your chastisement, judgment and discipline were to depart from me, then I would live in darkness, under the power of Satan. What benefits does the flesh of man have? If Your chastisement and judgment were to leave me, it would be as if Your Spirit had forsaken me, as if You were no longer with me. If that were so, how could I go on living?

II

You gave me sickness and took my freedom, I could continue living, but if Your chastisement and judgment were to ever leave me, I would have no way to go on living. If I were without Your chastisement and judgment, I would have lost Your love. Your love is too deep for me to put into words. Without Your love, I would live under Satan’s power, and would be unable to see Your glorious face. How could I continue living? I could hardly go on in such darkness, in such a life. Having You with me is like seeing You, so how could I leave You?

III

I implore You with all sincerity, I beg You not to take my greatest comfort from me, even if it’s just a sprinkling of Your comforting words. I’ve enjoyed Your love, and today I cannot be away from You; how could I not love You? I’ve shed many tears of sorrow because of Your love, yet I’ve always felt that a life such as this is more meaningful, more able to enrich me, more able to change me, and more able to allow me to attain the truth that should be possessed by the created beings.

from The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. The Experiences of Peter: His Knowledge of Chastisement and Judgment