LISTENING WITH YOUR HEART: HOW CONTEMPLATION BRINGS US CLOSE TO GOD

 

                Listening with your heart: how contemplation

                                brings us close to God

What is contemplation?

Dear children, have you ever just sat outside and watched the clouds or listened to the birds and felt really peaceful? That’s a little bit like what contemplation is! It is peacefully being with God.

Contemplation is when we quiet our hearts to listen to God—not just with our ears, but with our hearts.

It’s more than just saying prayers with words. It’s being still with  God. It’s loving Him silently. It’s letting Him love us back.

Why is contemplation important?

Imagine your best friend is talking to you, but you're always talking too. If you never stop to listen, you’ll miss something important, won't you? In the same way, contemplation is when we stop talking and start listening to God. We don't always need words. We just need to be with God.

This makes our friendship with God grow really deep, just like when you sit next to someone you love and you don’t need to say anything at all to feel happy.

What does contemplation look like?

Contemplation can look like this:

• sitting quietly in front of the Blessed Sacrament (the Blessed Sacrament is the tabernacle in the church where the consecrated Bread with the real Presence of Jesus is). So when you sit in front of the tabernacle, you are sitting with beautiful Jesus, the Son of God
• looking at a crucifix or a picture of Jesus and thinking about His love
• reading a Bible verse slowly, then sitting quietly with it
• closing your eyes and whispering in your heart: “Jesus, I’m here. I love You.”

Ask yourself:

Can I be still for a while and think only about Jesus?

What happens when we contemplate?

When we sit still with God, something special happens:

• our hearts get peaceful
• God speaks to us in a gentle way
• we start to feel His love more and more
• we become more like Jesus.

It’s like sitting in the sunlight. You don’t have to do anything. The sun just warms you up. Contemplation is sitting in God’s light and letting His love warm your heart.

Saints who loved contemplation

Saint Teresa of Avila would sit and think about Jesus just loving her—and she became a great saint!

A holy priest named Saint John Vianney once saw a man sitting in church quietly. When asked what he was doing, the man said, ‘I look at Him, and He looks at me.’ That’s contemplation!”

You can practice contemplation too

You don’t have to be a grown-up to do this. You can be a contemplative child!

Here’s how:

1. find a quiet place
2. say, “Jesus, I want to be close to You”
3. be still. Breathe. Imagine Jesus is with you. Because He is.
4. stay with Him for a while!

Challenge:

Can you give some time each day just to be with Jesus?

Closing prayer (short contemplative prayer)

“Jesus, You are here with me. I love You.
I want to listen to You with my heart.
Help me be still, so I can hear You.
Help me love You more each day. Amen.”

Image inspiration ChatGPT and CN Whittle