Tag: Brother LawrenceBrother Lawrence – Continual Conversation With God
To become truly spiritual the heart must be empty of all other things, since God desires to be its only Master. And since He cannot be its Master without emptying it of all that is not Himself, He is prevented from doing all that He desires if it is not empty. There is no manner of life in the world more sweet or more delicious than continual conversation with God. They alone can understand it who practice it and savor it. I do not advise you, however, to practice it for this motive. The desire for spiritual consolation must not be our purpose in carrying on this practice. Instead, let us do it out of love for God and because it is His will. If I were a preacher, I would not preach anything else than the practice of the presence of God; and if I were a spiritual director, I would advise it to everyone – so much do I believe it necessary and yes, even easy. Oh! If we only knew how much we need the grace and help of God, we would never lose sight of Him, not even for a moment. Believe me; make a holy and firm resolve never voluntarily to withdraw yourself from God’s grace from this time on. Live the rest of your days in God’s holy presence, even if He judges it fitting to deprive you of all consolations of Heaven and earth for the sake of His love. Put your hand to the plough. If you work as you should, be assured that you will soon see the fruit of your efforts. I will help you through my prayers, poor though they may be. I commend myself earnestly to your prayers and to those of your community, being to all, and to you more particularly. Your humble servant, Brother Lawrence Taken from the third letter of “Practicing the Presence of God“ Brother Lawrence – On Managing Our Minds and Distractions in Prayer
You are not writing anything new to me. You are not the only one agitated in thoughts. Our mind is extremely fickle, but since the will is master of all our powers, it must call back the mind and carry it to God as its final goal. When the mind has not been brought down at the outset, and has a few wicked habits of straying and wasting time, these habits are difficult to conquer. They usually draw us, in spite of ourselves, back to the things of earth. I believe that a remedy for this is to admit our faults and humble ourselves before God. I advise you not to pray aloud much during your fixed times of prayer. Long speeches often become an occasion for straying. Hold yourself before God as a poor mute, unable to talk, or as a paralytic at the door of a rich man. Busy yourself with keeping your mind in the presence of the Lord. If it strays and withdraws sometimes, do not worry about it. Worrying only serves to distract the mind rather than to call it back to God. The will must recall it gently. If you persevere in this way, God will have mercy on you. One way to call your mind easily back to God during your fixed prayer times and to hold it more steady, is not to let it take much flight during the day. You must keep it strictly in the presence of God. As you become used to doing that over and over in your mind, it will be easy to remain at peace during your prayer times, or at least to recall your mind from its wanderings… Your very humble servant, Brother Lawrence Taken from the eighth letter of “Practicing the Presence of God“ |
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