Thomas Merton says that prayer is mainly about an awakened heart. By this he means that a
person is open to receiving God’s love and support not only in formal prayer, but also in
cultivating an openness to receiving God’s promptings during the rest of the day.
With an open heart in the happenings of daily life, the line between what is sacred and what
is secular is dissolved. Everything becomes an opportunity for God to reveal God’s self. An
awakened heart is our response to God’s gift of love throughout our day. It means at times
putting aside the chatter going on in our minds, which keeps us bogged down in thoughts
from our ego of what we have done, are doing, will do, or what is being done to us. In other
words, we limit ourselves.
An awakened heart provides a new dimension. It is a way of seeing our lives from God’s
perspective, in which we have an important part in God’s plan playing a unique role in God’s
design for all of creation. We listen to the God within us. God leads us to fulfill what St. Paul
says “is lacking in Christ.”
- Do you find it difficult to be aware of God’s promptings throughout your day?
- Would fingering rosary beads or repeating a few words of prayer help you?
- What has been the result of listening to God during your day?
O God, give me an awakened heart.