Talking

“My soul is restless until it rests in You.” (Saint Augustine).

Christ Talking (Henry Coller)

Saint Augustine very famously said, “My soul is restless until it rests in You.”

He was speaking – of course – about humanity’s search for God while in this life.  And he was speaking in a very applied and practical manner.  You see, Saint Augustine had lived a terribly sinful life.  He had bragged – at some stage – that he had committed every sin and enjoyed them all.  He was particularly plagued by the temptations of the flesh – with lust being a significant problem for him.  He fathered children with women who he never married.  And all the while – while he continued in his sinful ways, his faithful mother, Saint Monica, prayed for him!  And for over three decades she continued to pray for him and his salvation!

And I have been reflecting on that expression that I have heard a million times before…  “My soul is restless until it rests in You.”

And what is he really saying in that beautiful and poetic way?  Well, he is asking to know God.  After all, how could a soul rest in a place or with a BEING, if it did not know the place or BEING and know that it was safe?

When I go to sleep at night, I first walk around my home and ensure that all the doors and windows are locked and that everything is packed away and that my children are safely tucked away in their beds.  In other words, before I rest each night, I first check that I have a safe place to rest in and that the souls under my care are provided for and protected.  Perhaps I get this from my mother.  My mother spent decades keeping herself awake while we were going out at night to make sure that we returned home safely each night.

And it seems to me that at the crux of those words by Saint Augustine, is the real question – am I safe with You, God?

And how can I learn if I am safe with God?

Well, the obvious response is that I can have faith in Him.  I can believe what I have been taught to believe and in knowing that God is Perfect Love and Perfectly Good and Perfectly Unwilling to cause me harm, I am able to believe in Him.  But there is also another response.  And that is talking.  The more I talk to God and spend time in His Company – actively seeking Him out – the better I can know Him and thus, the better that I can “rest” in Him…

Saint Josemaria said, “This is the only way to get to know Jesus: speak to Him. You will always find in Him a Father, a Friend, an Adviser, a Helper in all the noble deeds of your everyday life. And getting to know Him will give rise to Love.” (“Furrow”, at 662).

And it is that LOVE that comes from the talking.  That great great love…

For with prayer, I stand on Holy Ground where everything is clear. Here. At the Foot of the Cross.