Esther de Waal, Seeking God: The Way of Saint Benedict. Collegeville, MN: The Liturgical Press, 1984, p.43
To listen closely, with every fiber of our being, at every moment of the day, is one of the most difficult things in the world, and yet it is essential if we mean to find the God whom we are seeking. If we stop listening to what we find hard to take then, as the Abbot of St. Benoit-sur-Loire puts it in a striking phrase, “We’re likely to pass God by without even noticing Him.” And now it is our obedience which proves that we have been paying close attention. That word “obedience” is derived from the Latin oboedire, which shares its roots with audire, to hear. So to obey really means to hear and then act upon what we have heard, or, in other words, to see that the listening achieves its aim.
2 comments:
The word “obey” makes my hackles go up. It reminds me of people and institutions who might want me to be less myself. But the idea of listening to God, with every fiber of my being, at every moment of the day, fills me with joy.
Loving God, help me to listen closely, to empty myself so that I am ready to hear, to fill myself up with what I hear of your being.
Lately I have been hearing some things that I do not want to hear, and this meditation urges me to calm down and listen for God in the noise.
Help me to recognize You wherever You are, however You sound today, God. Please expand and deepen my understanding of Who You truly are.
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