The final help that we have in responding to the call to holiness is prayer and hope. We do not have to be long on the spiritual journey before we find that it is very unpredictable. It is not under our control. Our most carefully thought-out decisions can go awry at a moment’s notice. At times like this, as well as when we are trying to discern what we are to do, hope helps us realize that God has been in our lives all along. God has been faithful in the relationship, and God will continue to be faithful. This realization gives us hope for the moment of grace (i.e. help) in every difficult decision.
Hope has been defined as that mental habit through which a person both desires and expects the fulfillment of God’s promises of things to come. Of course you have to be aware of what God’s promises are. I’m not sure that many of us think about the promises that God has made to us through the Person of Jesus. What did He promise?
He promised that the Holy Spirit would be our Advocate, that is someone Who would provide us help when we were in need of assistance in dealing with one of life’s challenges. This help might come in a number of different ways: a person who might provide us support; a word or thought that we might hear; an insight we might have; something written that we just seem to stumble upon; or even a serendipitous happening. God’s help is always coming to us. The problem is that we don’t always recognize it. There are really no coincidences, I believe, in life. All the things that happen to us, all of the experiences we have, are designed to support us on our journey and help us to spiritually grow. Of course we have to be looking for, expecting and believing that God will help us.
Prayer, communication with God, is helpful not so much as we ask for guidance, but as we are quiet and listen for the Loved One. God knows our needs better than we do. God knows the consequences of all the options we have. But God seldom intrudes on our decision in an overt, noisy way. Usually, God’s guidance comes through insight when we are quiet.