50. Продолжение. Какими способами можно возбуждать в себе непрестанное памятование о Боге с любовью

And one more word or two in addition to what has been said. We must remember God. We must bring this to the point that the thought of God becomes akin to and dissolves with the mind and heart and with our consciousness. In order for such a memory and such a thought to be established, one must work on oneself without laziness. Work hard - God willing, you will achieve this; If you don’t work, you won’t achieve it. If you don’t achieve this, nothing will come of you; you won’t get any success in your spiritual life, and there won’t be any at all, for this is spiritual life. That's how vitally important it is! While straining to hold the thought of God, do not keep it bare, but combine with it all the concepts you know about God, Divine properties and actions, deepening your mind in this or that. Think more about God’s creation and providence, about the incarnation of God the Word and the work of our salvation completed by Him, about His death, resurrection and ascension into Heaven, the sending of the Holy Spirit, the structure of the Holy Church - the guardian of truth and grace, and about the preparation of the heavenly mansions in the Kingdom of Heaven for all believers and for yourself. Consider also the properties of God: ineffable goodness, wisdom, omnipotence, truth, omnipresence, omnipotence, omniscience, all-bliss and greatness. Please discuss all this during prayer, or better yet, especially while reading. When you discuss everything and clearly contemplate, then when you think about God you will not have a bare thought, but a thought accompanied and attracting many saving thoughts that act on the heart and excite the energy of the spirit. You can compose your own short prayer of praise to God, which would combine all this. For example, even in this form: “Glory to You, God, worshiped in the Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Soul! Glory to Thee, Who created all things! Glory to You, who has honored us with Your image! Glory to You, who did not abandon us in our fall! Glory to You, Lord Jesus Christ, who came, became incarnate, suffered, died for us, rose again, ascended into Heaven and sent down the Most Holy Spirit to us, established Your Church for the salvation of us and promised and established the Kingdom of Heaven for us! Glory to You, Lord, who wonderfully arranges the salvation of every person and entire nations. Glory to You, Lord, who draws me to salvation.” Try to especially understand this last point, bring yourself to the consciousness of God’s great mercies towards you and then always thank God for them. Thank Him for allowing you to be born into the world, to be born among Christian people, from pious parents, and then to receive such a good upbringing. Give thanks also for the fact that He places in you such holy decisions as you have recently decided and have provided further support for the power of the decision. Look over your entire life from the beginning, as you began to remember yourself, and notice all the cases of unexpected deliverance from trouble and unexpected receipt of joy. We don’t even notice many troubles, because they pass us by unnoticed by us. But, looking back, we cannot help but see that there was trouble here and there and it passed us by, but we cannot say how it passed. Look at such cases in your life and confess that it was the mercy of God, who loved you, towards you. Know that the hidden mercies of God for us - for each of us - are countless, for everything is from God. Confess these mercies and thank God with all your heart. But if you delve well into the course of your life, you will find many cases of God’s obvious mercy towards you. There would have been trouble, but it passed, you don’t know how. God delivered. Confess this and thank God who loves you. And the knowledge of the mercies common to all warms the heart, all the more so will it be warmed by the sight of mercies specifically for you. Love kindles love. Having felt how much the Lord loves you, you cannot remain cold towards Him: your heart itself will be drawn towards Him with thanksgiving and love. Keep your heart under the influence of such a conviction of the Lord’s love for you - and the warmth of your heart will soon grow into the flame of love for the Lord. When this is accomplished, then you will not need any reminders to remember God, and no instructions on how to succeed in this. Love does not allow you to forget your beloved Lord even for a minute. Se is the limit. Please accept this in your mind, and accept it with conviction. And then, to this end, direct all the work undertaken to establish thoughts about God in the mind and heart. It may be difficult for you to think about God’s properties and actions. But you seem to have the writings of St. Tikhon. In his cell letters you will find the most helpful guide for yourself. The saint clearly contemplates every property and action of God and depicts it in words with warmth and conviction, which, if you read carefully, will overflow into your heart. And there’s another point I need to explain to you, but that’s another time. You might be interested in: