Fix Your Gaze on Him
Anybody who, when praying to God, notices that he is praying, is not entirely attentive to prayer. He is turning away his attention from the God, to Whom he is praying, in order to think of the prayer by which he is praying. The very pains we take to prevent distractions often work upon us as a considerable distraction. What is most praiseworthy in all spiritual activity is complete simplicity.
Do you wish to gaze upon God? Gaze upon Him then, and put your mind on this. If you begin to reflect and to turn your eyes upon self in order to learn what sort of attitude you are maintaining as you gaze upon Him, then it is no longer upon Him that your gaze is fixed, but upon your own conduct, and upon yourself. Anyone who is engaged in fervent prayer does not so much as know if he is in prayer or not, so great is the ardor of holy love. He carries on no self-examination, but holds himself fixed and fastened in God.
It is certain that distractions are multiplied ordinarily according to the degree of one's vivacity of mind, and that there are minds so restless as to be distracted during the entire time of an Office. Yet the will of such a person is no more guilty than would be the case as regards dreams coming to them in sleep. Patience in these cases, a continuous desire for God, renewed from time to time, is often of more worth and profit to the soul, than an entirely peaceful, calm, and pleasant power of attention.
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