DESIRES IN PRAYER by Fr. James Martin, SJ
Desire is an essential part of a healthy spiritual life. For in our deepest desires God's desires for us are revealed. A married couple, for instance, is drawn together out of multiple desires -- physical, emotional, spiritual -- in order to live a life of mutual love. Desire plays a critical part in discerning any vocation: a particular job or profession, or the priesthood or religious life.
So pay attention to the holy desires that arise in prayer. You may experience a longing to follow Jesus more closely. To emulate one of the saints. Or simply to become a more loving person. This is one reason why St. Ignatius Loyola asks us to "pray for what you want and desire" when approaching God: your holy desires reveal God's desires for you. And over time, you'll gradually learn how to discern between selfish wants (I want a new smartphone) and holy desires (I want to become a better Christian).
It's also important to pray for the simpler things you desire, as long as they are not immoral. Sometimes Catholics feel guilty about praying for healing from an illness, for example. But asking humbly for what you desire is part of being honest with God.
Ultimately, your deepest desire is for God. the insatiable longing for union with the divine comes from the core of your being. And that longing is planted within you by God. For God's deep desire is union with you.
(This meditation on 'desires' in prayer appeared in the April issue of
GIVE US THIS DAY, a monthly missalette published by Liturgical Press in Collegeville, MN:
www.giveusthisday.org.)
