Steps to my discernment

By Maria Prudhomme

We may wonder how ‘do I begin to discern this call for my life?’ There are a few steps that we can actively implement into our lives that will help us to truly hear this, or understand what is the call for my life.

How do I begin to know someone or understand what they are saying? We fall in love with them! Spending time with the person, learning about them, observing their ways and mannerisms.

Similarly, with God, we must spend time with Him. Yes, you heard me FALL IN LOVE WITH GOD. For some of us, it’s Eucharistic adoration, Christian meditation, reading the scripture, Lectio Divina and so many more. Find one that’s comfortable for you and do such. Mine is Christian meditation and using contemplative prayer, ‘Pray as you go’, and Examen.

Now we are in love! What do we do? We are head over heels at this point and, just like in a relationship, you want to know more. But the way for knowing more is also for us not just falling in love but also knowing how much He loves us and reflecting on how much love He has for us.

And at this point, you begin to trust your partner, same way you trust and surrender to God. How am I going to surrender so easily? Well, when you see the love and desire someone has for you, you automatically trust them.

For example, when you were a child and your parents threw you in the air, you did not know how well they could catch, but you trusted them.

Similarly with God: after you have seen what He desires for you and how much He loves you, all you can think of doing is surrendering to God and all He has will be revealed. Psalm 37:4, take delight in the Lord, and He will grant your hearts desires. When you do this, you participate in active listening.

Now in today’s society, we are surrounded by so much noise, we need to start to cut out some of our external distractions. This is when you will now be tuned into your internal noise. Your fears, distractions, emotions, these we bring to God in prayer. You can choose to sit in silence, read scriptures, and seek spiritual direction to hear that gentle, clear call for your life.

This process is one I will say not to rush. Don’t be aggressive either. Take your time and be gentle with yourself.