| The Best Things in Life |
Chapter 18 |
Page 6 |
St. Francis of Assisi was said to live a life of unceasing prayer. A friend desired to get the secret of the saint’s devotion, and watched him to see how he prayed. All he saw, however, was this – no long hours spent in prayer, no agonies of supplication on his knees, but, again and again, as he went on with his duties, he was heard saying, with bowed head and clasped hands, “Jesus! Jesus! Jesus!” That was the way he prayed. He did everything in the name of Christ. He and Jesus walked together continually – they were never separated. St. Francis did not need, when he felt the pressure of weakness, when the burden was growing too heavy, when he was in danger of falling –he did not need in any emergency to leave his work and hurry away to his cell to pray. He prayed just where he was; he talked to Christ about everything as familiarly as he would have done with a friend.
This is the kind of Christian life our Master would have us live. We are not to pray merely at certain hours, nor in formal acts of devotion; every breath is to be a prayer. Nor is our prayer to be only coming to God with requests, asking him to do things for us. Request is really the smallest part of true praying. What do you and your close and trusted friend do when you are together? What do you talk about? Is the burden of your conversation asking favours? May you not be with your friend for hours and never make a single request? You talk of things that are dear to you. Sometimes indeed you may not speak at all, but sit in silence, your hearts flowing together in love and fellowship. Prayer to God is not all clamour for favours. Much of it is love’s tryst, sweet communion without words, as when John leaned his head on Jesus’ breast, and loved and rested in silence.
“Rather, as friends sit sometimes hand in hand,
Nor mar with words the sweet speech of their eyes;
So in soft silence let us oftener bow,
Nor try with words to make God understand.”
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