2. Contemplation – It is true that human thought is creative, though Mr. Kelly's examples might be a little flawed; but it is definitely true that what we think, we become. If the goal of human existence is to become partakers in the divine nature, seems we should spend more than a little time contemplating the divine. Maybe there exist those who can ponder their innermost thoughts & attain to the divine essence whilst working at their desk with the phone ringing, or in line at the grocery store or in traffic, but the rest of us need silence.
The enemy hates silence, so he fills our lives with as much noise & distraction & activity as possible. Therefore, unless you decide to change the pattern of your life & say, “I will spend W hours in prayer every Xday & Yday at Z 0’clock, & I will cull these things out of my life, because they're really just noisy & empty distractions," I doubt you will ever really find that time; there’s always something to crowd it out. We are habitual creatures. Our habits – the actions that reflect our priorities & our world view – are the activiites for which we regularly give our time. It is largely through our habits that we create ourselves. If our habits are for good, we grow in virtue; if for bad, we grow in vice. There is no neutral ground here; we are either climbing the mountain of God or falling back down.
Another consideration is receptivity. Even if we could dwell in the most remote desert cave, the silence would do little good if we make it only a monologue about ourselves - it must be a dialogue. Christians call this loving exchange prayer. God converses with us in the silence, but he is the only one who really has anything interesting to say, so we must be prepared to listen. But don’t be fooled. This is no ordinary, empty silence; it is a very active waiting, full of the power of God &, therefore, full of every possibility. It was in this silence that Mary received the angel & gave her fiat. Make it a habit to spend time with God in silence.
No comments:
Post a Comment