June 10th
St Chantal on Prayer
"Speak Lord..."

The very essence of mental prayer, St. Francis de Sales used to say, consists in talking to ourselves and with God, praising and blessing Him because of what He is, speaking to Him as would a child to his father, a disciple to his master, a subject to his king, a poor beggar to a rich man, a criminal to his judge, a wife to her husband; in short, as we might to a faithful friend; like an utterly ignorant person, humbly silent, not knowing what to say, begging for divine treasure at the doorway of the heavenly court.

Should it happen during prayer that we experience some impulse from God by means of which He indicates that He wishes to communicate Himself to us, we must then halt all our own activity and come to a full stop, in order to give place to His coming and not to hinder Him by any action which might go counter to His will.   Rather by an interior silence and a deep reverence we must make ourselves ready to receive what He may send.  Sometimes, when we sense His coming, we may say to Him:  "Speak, Lord, your servant hears."  Then, opening up our heart in great peace and consenting to His grace, we must resolve to draw profit from it, obedient to the impulse received at prayer.