Lisa Machado
St. Hildegard of Bingen and St. Jane de Chantal Writing Groups
First-century Ephesus was a thriving economic and cultural hub where it was common to worship various gods, including Artemis and Zeus. The gods of today’s modern era typically have names so subtle we may not recognize them: We may prioritize physical appearance, social media, news channels, technology, family, and even our pets. These worldly things are not inherently bad, but they can, individually or collectively, compete for space in our hearts, distracting us from spending time with the one true God.
As human creatures, it does not seem logical that it is possible to know, on a personal level, the true God, the One who breathes creation. Yet, this is possible!
Knowing someone personally requires the mutual cooperation of open and vulnerable hearts. This relationship often comes with sacrifice. Giving time to another is more valuable than any material gift; yet our distractions challenge our ability—even our desire—to give time to another person. Being available to listen, to engage in dialogue, and to share innermost thoughts does not always come naturally. We can appear weak when we admit our fears and failures; yet through humility, relationships can become stronger as we commune at an interior level, where one heart speaks to another heart. God creates us to live in fellowship, to commune, with one another.
God also creates us to commune with himself. He speaks to us in creative ways. Are we listening? It is in silence where we are likely to hear the soft voice of his Spirit. The silence may be present in our physical surroundings, or the silence exists within the heart, in spite of the noise around us. Mother Teresa said, “God speaks in the silence of the heart.” How has God spoken to us today?
Providing interior space within our hearts allows the relationship to develop. He comes to our interior space when we invite him to our prayer, when we reflect on his creation, when we read Scripture, and when we ponder or imitate the life of Jesus Christ. When our heart makes the movement from knowing about God to experiencing God, we can be transformed.
Within the Gospels, Jesus reminds his followers that his heart is one with the Father. To know Jesus is to know the Father. Since the disciples saw Jesus withdrawing often to pray alone with the Father, they asked, “Lord, teach us to pray” (Luke 11:1), to which he responded with the words of the Lord’s Prayer. We are fortunate they asked!
Moving from knowing about God’s heart to experiencing God’s heart can be a lifetime journey. We are invited into the relationship, to take part in it. We do not control it, nor should we try to control it. We would be wise to imitate Christ by meeting the Father in a quiet space, with an open heart, away from the noisy demands of the world. We may not hear his voice right away. There may be times when he is silent. As with any authentic relationship, the relationship will mature as we present “as is,” with our flawed selves. He will reveal his heart. He will surprise us. We will learn to trust more. Augustine refers to this interior meeting space as “the altar of the heart,” a sacred space where we surrender our most private thoughts. John Henry Newman describes God’s communication to humans as “the heart speaks to the heart.”
May the God of our Lord Jesus Christ give us a spirit of wisdom and revelation as we come to know him.
How will we make space for heart-to-heart conversations with God the Father?