'Converse'-ation

NECESSARY PRACTICES FOR ATTAINING

THE SPIRITUAL LIFE

1. The most holy, the most general and the most

necessary practice in the spiritual life is the practice of

the presence of God, whereby the soul finds her joy and

contentment in His companionship, talking humbly

and lovingly to Him always and at all times, without

rule or system, but particularly in moments of temptation,

of trouble, of spiritual dryness, of revulsion, and

especially when we fall into unfaithfulness and sin.

talking humbly and lovingly to Him always and at all times....

My other translation of the Maxims uses the word converse in this sentence, which, to me, implies listening as well as talking. I am called to conversation with God. I know I am because the topic comes up within my day often. I want to have conversation with God. I tend to be pretty vocal with him and my listening skills are not very well developed. Yet still I find excuses, or noise. I pray for the willingness to converse with Him. I pray for the willingness to talk humbly and to listen to His words for me. Today I heard (through the daily devotional of Fr. Grabner), that to know the will of God we should look in the places around us where people need to be loved. Here is our calling from God: to love those in our lives, and to love them well, as He would have us do . Trekking Catholic.