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bear with yourself in correcting them,
as you would with your neighbor.
Lay aside this ardor of mind,
which exhausts your body, and leads
you to commit errors.
Accustom yourself gradually to
carry prayer into all your daily occupations.
Speak, move, work, in peace,
as if you were in prayer, as indeed
you ought to be.
Do everything without excitement,
by the spirit of grace.
As soon as you perceive your natural impetuosity gliding in,
retire quietly within, where is the kingdom of God.
Listen to the leadings of grace, then say and do nothing
but what the Holy Spirit shall put in your heart.
You will find that you will become more tranquil,
that your words will be fewer and more effectual,
and that, with less effort, you will accomplish more good.
FRANCOIS DE LA MOTHE FENELON.
Every duty, even the least duty, involves
the whole principle of obedience. And little duties make
the will dutiful, that is, supple and prompt to obey.
Little obediences lead into great. The daily round of duty
is full of probation and of discipline; it trains the will,
heart, and conscience.We need not to be prophets
or apostles. The commonest life may be full of perfection.
The duties of home are a discipline
for the ministries of heaven.
H. E. MANNING.
Every morning compose your soul for a tranquil day,
and all through it be careful often to recall your resolution,
and bring yourself back to it, so to say. If something
discomposes you, do not be upset, or troubled; but
having discovered the fact, humble yourself gently
before God, and try to bring your mind into a quiet attitude.
Say to yourself, "Well, I have made a false step;
now I must go more carefully and watchfully."
Do this each time, however frequently you fall.
When you are at peace use it profitably, making
constant acts of meekness, and seeking to be calm
even in the most trifling things. Above all, do not be
discouraged; be patient; wait;
strive to attain a calm, gentle spirit.
ST. FRANCIS DE SALES.
Am I acting in simplicity, from a germ of the Divine life within,
or am I shaping my path to obtain
some immediate result of expediency?
Am I endeavoring to compass effects, amidst a tangled web
of foreign influences I cannot calculate;
or am I seeking simply to do what is right,
and leaving the consequences to the good providence of God?
M. A. SCHIMMELPENNINCK.
The soul ceases to weary itself with planning and foreseeing,
giving itself up to God's Holy Spirit within, and to the teachings
of His providence without. He is not forever fretting as to
his progress, or looking back to see how far he is getting on;
rather he goes steadily and quietly on, and makes
all the more progress because it is unconscious.
So he never gets troubled and discouraged;
if he falls he humbles himself, but gets up at once,
and goes on with renewed earnestness.
JEAN NICOLAS GROU.
I had found [communion with God] to consist,
not only in the silencing of the outward man,
but in the silencing also of every thought, and
in the concentration of the soul and all its powers
into a simple, quiet watching and waiting for
the food which its heavenly Father might see fit
either to give or to withhold. In no case could it
be sent empty away; for, if comfort, light, or joy
were withheld, the act of humble waiting at the gate
of heavenly wisdom could not but work patience in it,
and thus render it, by humility and obedience, more
"meet to be a partaker of the inheritance of the saints in light,"
and also more blessed in itself.
M. A. KELTY.
Possess yourself as much as you possibly can in peace;
not by any effort, but by letting all things fall to the ground
which trouble or excite you.This is no work, but is, as it were,
a setting down a fluid to settle that has become
turbid through agitation.
MADAME GUYON.
