Discernment Ideas.

[Spem in alium]

[left]So, I'm trying to get my discernment going again as I'm feeling even more drawn to religious life. An issue I'm having is finding things to do which will help me to discern better. I was doing really well earlier in the year, but I've since become so busy and lost the time to maintain a good level of involvement in my faith life. I used to be able to make time to go to Mass every day, but with university I found my time limited. I was also able to attend Adoration once a week while at uni, but now the semester's over I won't be making it anymore. There is Adoration at my local church, but only once a week on Friday nights (a difficult time for me, as I'm often very tired). It might sound like I'm making excuses, but I just miss the depth I felt I had in my faith. God is calling me to be closer to Him, and I just find myself feeling so far away and like I've slackened off. Beyond prayer and attending Mass and Adoration I'm not sure what else I should be doing to rekindle my faith.[/left]

[left]What else could I do to increase my faith life? I was interested in getting a breviary or prayer book so I could start praying the Divine Office, but wasn't sure which version was best. My family don't really show much of an interest in praying with me, which is difficult as I know that having their support in common prayer would help me a lot. I just love God and desire His presence, but I'm stuck for ideas as to how to get close to Him. I try things, but I always end up wanting more. Many thanks in advance, guys [/left]

[emmaberry]

Spem in alium, congrats on your newfound interest in discernment!

I know what you mean about feeling far from God though. Our faith life is a series of ups and downs, and in discernment this only intensifies.

One clue that you aren't simply making excuses is that you aren't blaming God for His 'farness' from you--you attribute it to less time spent in prayer and devotions, which is probably true. Too many people blame God for feeling so far away but never find any fault in themselves, so you are definitely taking a step in the right direction.

My advice would be Rosary, Rosary, Rosary. If I have to forego all devotions because of a hectic day, I still try to make time for the rosary. At the very least, you can say it at bedtime and your guardian angel finishes it for you! I am sure you know of all its graces, but saying it daily really keeps me in communion with Mary and Jesus. If I don't say it, it is easy to feel distant from them.

My other advice would be to listen to Danielle Rose or other catholic artists when normally you'd be listening to secular music. DR has a cd entitled Pursue Me that she will give you for free if you are discerning. Also, if you find yourself wasting time on the TV (I use to watch close to 5 hours a day!!! ) switch to EWTN, and try to cut back.

Of course say the Divine Office! I cannot recommend different breviaries since I only have the Christian Prayer, but it is good because you can start the day with morning prayer and end with evening and night prayer pretty easily. If you think you can handle the full Divine Office-go for it! Beware though, if you are busy, it will probs be somewhat overwhelming.

Another thing that might help you feel God's presence is, at 3 o'clock, to say the Divine Mercy, or just meditate on the Passion of Jesus for a few moments. Everyone is different, so what works for me may drive you crazy, but I find that inserting little things into my day can really transform it and help me keep Jesus in mind. St Therese's Little Way of offering small sufferings/sacrifices/acts of love to Jesus for souls or any other intention can help you feel close to Him also.

You may already be doing all of these things. Just wanted to add what helps me. Even if you do this though, bad days will come. Just hold tight to your rosary!!!!

Prayers for your discernment.

[Spem in alium]

Emmaberry, you helped so much. Many thanks

I usually carry a Rosary with me wherever I go. There was a period earlier this year when I would try and say it every day, but again, I've slackened off. I prayed it last week during Adoration, and that reminded me once again of how beautiful a prayer it is. I will make more of an effort to pray it regularly, even just a decade if I can.

I am quite a fan of choral and Christian music, and listen to it most days (one of my favourite pieces (if not my favourite piece) is Thomas Tallis' [i]Spem in Alium[/i]...hence my choice of username ) I find that it not only relaxes me, but also transports me to a place away from everything else (if that makes sense). I'll check out Danielle Rose, too. I think the main issue for me is spending time on the computer, I don't watch TV as much. I feel like it compromises my desire to get closer to God, so I'm trying to fill my life with other things.

I am less busy than I used to be, so I would like to try. Morning prayer would be fine for me as I wake up fairly early (between 4-5am) and love to pray when it is dark, and night prayer wouldn't be much of an issue as I like to be alone at night. It would be more beneficial for me to have a book rather than to source the prayers over the net (as I'm trying to use my comp. less, and also because I love the feel of a book in my hand) so I'm hoping to invest in an affordable copy of some kind.

That idea of meditating on Jesus' Passion is one that I love deeply I think those sort of things will work best. Something that gives me great fulfillment is merely thinking about and meditating on God, so contemplating the Passion or praying the Divine Mercy would be right up my alley. And St. Therese's Little Way would be great too, I think. I recently read her autobiography and was so inspired

Oh no, I'm currently doing very few of the things you suggested Thank you so much for your wonderful advice and for your prayers. I often feel alone in my discernment, mostly because my family don't really get involved and I haven't told many people. So your reply has given me much help and comfort. I will take up your suggestions. Thanks again, and God bless.

[Noemi]

Praise God. If you can sing, you can also sing to Him. There are a lot of praising videos on youtube too. Like: Our God , Our God is an amesome God, Come on, my soul. The songs of Taizé are also great stuff for that. Nada te turbe (the prayer of St. Therese Avila), In the Lord I'll be ever thankful, Bless the Lord, my soul, Laudate omnes gentes. You can sing the Taizé-songs for a long time, repeat it over and over. I've heard that in Taizé they can even sing one song 10 times or more.

If you miss the daily mass and you know the mass-schedule of some churches you can adore the Blessed Sacrament spiritually at masstime. Or pray for those who attend to the mass, pray for the priest to give them a good sermon (homily), pray for the altarservants, pray for the sick who cannot attend the mass... you can embrace the whole world with your prayers!

If you speak any foreign languages you can pray in that language. It boosts your knowledge and you don't get bored. And there are lots and lost of beautiful chants in Latin.

Be blessed and have courage!

[maximillion]

There is also [url="http://divineoffice.org/"]http://divineoffice.org/[/url]

Edited June 24, 2012 by maximillion

[Spem in alium]

[quote name='Noemi' timestamp='1340524975' post='2448275']
Praise God. If you can sing, you can also sing to Him. There are a lot of praising videos on youtube too. Like: Our God , Our God is an amesome God, Come on, my soul. The songs of Taizé are also great stuff for that. Nada te turbe (the prayer of St. Therese Avila), In the Lord I'll be ever thankful, Bless the Lord, my soul, Laudate omnes gentes. You can sing the Taizé-songs for a long time, repeat it over and over. I've heard that in Taizé they can even sing one song 10 times or more.

If you miss the daily mass and you know the mass-schedule of some churches you can adore the Blessed Sacrament spiritually at masstime. Or pray for those who attend to the mass, pray for the priest to give them a good sermon (homily), pray for the altarservants, pray for the sick who cannot attend the mass... you can embrace the whole world with your prayers!

If you speak any foreign languages you can pray in that language. It boosts your knowledge and you don't get bored. And there are lots and lost of beautiful chants in Latin.

Be blessed and have courage!
[/quote]

Thank you so much! I do like singing, and hymns are some of my favourite pieces to sing I'll check out the videos you suggested. And your prayer ideas are great, I'll definitely try and use them the next time I'm in Mass.

[quote name='maximillion' timestamp='1340527063' post='2448278']
There is also [url="http://divineoffice.org/"]http://divineoffice.org/[/url]
[/quote]

Thank you! That's a great site

[Gemma]

Ah, I remember those days! Five years at one residential college and a 15 minute walk put me in the presence of the Lord there. The year before that, I was in a downtown, two blocks from a Catholic church, and I didn't know it was there. I nearly died until one of the dorm students dropped a bulletin in the elevator. My sister got mad at herself because she forgot that that church was there.

Semester schedules change everything. Flexibility is a great virtue, and after praying for the insight regarding class scheduling, then leave the prayer schedule to Mary. You'll see everything fall into place.

I have the Little Office of the Sacred Heart of Jesus on my Droid, and that is what I use because of my own schedule. I drive my Aspie son to college, so I'm in school too, in a way.

One thing I used to do was find cosy corners in the classroom building where I could come away from the crowd and recollect myself. I tried doing this even in high school--especially public school. After I transferred to the Catholic high school for the last two years, I had only to look at the crucifix on the wall, since it's a sacramental.

When St. Dominic was on his preaching journeys, he would oftentimes hang back and recollect himself, then catch up with his companion. IMHO this is very imitable.

Blessings,
Gemma

[TheresaThoma]

For the LotH/breviary I would suggest this version [url="http://www.amazon.com/Christian-Prayer-Liturgy-Hours-Leather/dp/0899424244/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1340557065&sr=8-1&keywords=christian+prayer+liturgy+of+the+hours"]http://www.amazon.com/Christian-Prayer-Liturgy-Hours-Leather/dp/0899424244/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1340557065&sr=8-1&keywords=christian+prayer+liturgy+of+the+hours[/url] . I have this one and I love that it has a zippered case so it is a bit more durable. I also put different prayer cards in it. A feature you might like is there is a whole section for songs.

[Byzantine]

Get a spiritual director (preferably the priest you confess to) and tell him everything (not just sins). I'm not joking. This will help him help you.

[Spem in alium]

[quote name='Gemma' timestamp='1340542006' post='2448286']
Ah, I remember those days! Five years at one residential college and a 15 minute walk put me in the presence of the Lord there. The year before that, I was in a downtown, two blocks from a Catholic church, and I didn't know it was there. I nearly died until one of the dorm students dropped a bulletin in the elevator. My sister got mad at herself because she forgot that that church was there.

Semester schedules change everything. Flexibility is a great virtue, and after praying for the insight regarding class scheduling, then leave the prayer schedule to Mary. You'll see everything fall into place.

I have the Little Office of the Sacred Heart of Jesus on my Droid, and that is what I use because of my own schedule. I drive my Aspie son to college, so I'm in school too, in a way.

One thing I used to do was find cosy corners in the classroom building where I could come away from the crowd and recollect myself. I tried doing this even in high school--especially public school. After I transferred to the Catholic high school for the last two years, I had only to look at the crucifix on the wall, since it's a sacramental.

When St. Dominic was on his preaching journeys, he would oftentimes hang back and recollect himself, then catch up with his companion. IMHO this is very imitable.

Blessings,
Gemma
[/quote]

Thanks Gemma I think things worked better for me when I was under pressure for time. I really felt like I was making so much more of an effort in things. But now because I lack the structure of semester, I've got so much more time and a lot less motivation. I think I just really need to revive the urgency I once had.
Last semester's timetable was great, because out of the three days I was at uni I could make Mass on two days and Adoration for a couple of hours if I wanted on one day. Next semester I'll be in a different country, and I'm hoping for a similar flexibility. I will ask Mary for guidance there.
What you say about St. Dominic is very inspiring, and definitely imitable. I'll try and recollect myself too.
Thanks again for such a kind-hearted response. God bless!

[Spem in alium]

[quote name='TheresaThoma' timestamp='1340557384' post='2448322']
For the LotH/breviary I would suggest this version [url="http://www.amazon.com/Christian-Prayer-Liturgy-Hours-Leather/dp/0899424244/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1340557065&sr=8-1&keywords=christian+prayer+liturgy+of+the+hours"]http://www.amazon.co...gy of the hours[/url] . I have this one and I love that it has a zippered case so it is a bit more durable. I also put different prayer cards in it. A feature you might like is there is a whole section for songs.
[/quote]

Thank you! That does look like a fantastic version, and a more durable one would be excellent for me My main concern in getting a breviary or LotH is that as a beginner to this, I'd like one that's fairly simple to use. How easily manageable is this edition?
It does sound good, so I'll see if I can get a copy. One with room for prayer cards would be great for me, as I like using them. And a section on songs would be amesome too. Thanks again, God bless

[Kayte Postle]

The Magnificat magazine is something that you might find helpful. It has morning prayers, mass, evening prayers, meditations for the day, and each day has a bit about a certain saint. I've found it helpful for me in keeping with some structure to my prayer/scripture life, and it's really easy to use! It's also small and portable, so you can take each one with you everywhere. I love my subscription to Magnificat.

[Spem in alium]

[quote name='Byzantine' timestamp='1340557439' post='2448323']
Get a spiritual director (preferably the priest you confess to) and tell him everything (not just sins). I'm not joking. This will help him help you.
[/quote]

Thanks, Byz. Again, I have been slack in the confessing department. :/ I have spoken about my thoughts with two priests and one sister (via email). The first priest I spoke with was very considerate, but it was the first time I'd met him so I think he may have felt a bit awkward, and I didn't know much about what I wanted yet so had no real idea of what I should have been speaking about. The other is a family friend and I found it much easier to speak with him. He gave me a lot of advice. Basically he encouraged me to finish my study before I start discerning properly. While I can see the practicality in that, I just feel so compelled to do things now :/ I just have this desire that isn't relaxing or lessening.
My parish has two priests, and I know one of them better than the other. I have confessed to him before and he is very friendly, so I think he might be a good person to speak with and give me guidance. He's not originally from Australia so may not know much about orders here, but I think he'd help with spiritual things. I will try and make it to Reconciliation this week and speak to him about what I'm experiencing.
Thanks again, Byz. God bless you.

[Spem in alium]

[quote name='Kayte Postle' timestamp='1340580147' post='2448440']
The Magnificat magazine is something that you might find helpful. It has morning prayers, mass, evening prayers, meditations for the day, and each day has a bit about a certain saint. I've found it helpful for me in keeping with some structure to my prayer/scripture life, and it's really easy to use! It's also small and portable, so you can take each one with you everywhere. I love my subscription to Magnificat.
[/quote]

Thanks, Kayte! That does sound like a great thing to be reading. I'll see if I can get it here. God bless

[Kayte Postle]

[quote name='Spem in alium' timestamp='1340580220' post='2448442']
Thanks, Kayte! That does sound like a great thing to be reading. I'll see if I can get it here. God bless
[/quote]

You're in aussie yes? I believe you can get it there, though it's a bit more pricey because of the shipping.
https://www.magnificat.net/english/abo1.asp