"Even if you do not feel much confidence, you must still not fail to make acts of it, saying to Our Lord:
'Although, dear Lord, I have no feeling of confidence in You, I know all the same that You are my God, that I am wholly Yours, and that I have no hope but in Your goodness; therefore I abandon myself, with all that I have and am, into Your hands.'
"It is always in our power to make these acts. Though there may be difficulty, there is never impossibility. It is on these occasions and amid these difficulties that we ought to show fidelity to Our Lord, for though we make these acts without fervor and without satisfaction to ourselves, we must not distress ourselves about that.... if the heart did not will it, the lips would not will it; the lips would not utter a word. Having done this, be at peace...'"
St. Francis de Sales, Conferences
Painting: Karl Julius von Leypold, Wanderer im Sturm
Good advice from a great spiritual director.
ReplyDeleteI agree that St. Francis de Sales is a great director indeed, his wisdom still touching us after 400 years...
ReplyDeleteThanks for posting this. I have been really low lately and I feel like I have no confidence in God. I keep saying I have confidence but I don't really feel it. It is helpful to know I can just say so even when the feeling isn't there.
ReplyDeleteMonica, I too have had times of feeling I have no confidence in God. It feels pretty bleak. I find words like these of St. Francis reassuring, and I so often LIVE BY the realization that I can trust God and love Him BY DECISION. I'll say a special prayer for you tonight.
DeleteNancy, thank you so much for remembering me in your prayers!
DeleteThese are great reminders to surrender....thanks so much for the reassuring words that we don't have to feel confident to be confident in our Lord.
ReplyDeleteI love this painting. It so expresses the difficult paths we find ourselves on during various times of our: to surrender and to surrender even when we feel no confidence; especially when we feel no confidence. God Bless...
ReplyDeleteThank you. Yes, ESPECIALLY when we feel no confidence...
DeleteThese paintings...where do you find these beautiful, contemplative, haunting pictures?
ReplyDeleteI love finding the paintings! I get most of them from Wikimedia Commons, which has a wealth of free paintings (photos also), and I like the fact that it tells you clearly if and why (most of mine are because of age) the work is in public domain. I only use those that are, because I'm not sure I'd attribute correctly! If you haven't checked them out, the painting I used on this post (for example) is at http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Karl_Julius_von_Leypold_-_Wanderer_im_Sturm.jpg
DeleteSt Francis de Sales always seems to have the right words for any situation doesn't he?
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