Sayings of St. Nilus of Sinai:
Do not pray so that everything will be according to your wishes, because it may not always conform to God’s will — but better pray "Thy will be done," and in every matter, pray this way because He always wants everything good and beneficial for your soul.
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Instead of letting God to arrange things that are best for me, I sometimes unwisely forced God’s will through my prayers, asking Him for one thing or another. Later, upon receiving what I had asked for, I was left lamenting because things were not what I thought they would be.
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Therefore, don’t lament if you don’t receive instantly from God that which you had asked for. He wants to provide you with a greater benefit by forcing you to have to stand patiently before Him in prayer. Because what can be greater than conversing with God and communing with Him?
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Condescending to our infirmity, the Holy Spirit comes to us even when we are not chaste; and if He finds our mind occupied in genuine prayer, He then descends into it and casts out the whole crowd of thoughts and wishes, thereby disposing our mind toward pure prayers.
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Know that the Angels induce us toward prayers, stand with us during them, rejoicing and praying for us. But if we are careless and accept sinful thoughts, we distress our Angels. Because, while they have committed themselves for us, we are too lazy to ask God for ourselves. Worse yet, in neglecting to serve God and seemingly turning our backs on their Master, we conduct a mental conversation with unchaste demons.
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Instead of letting God to arrange things that are best for me, I sometimes unwisely forced God’s will through my prayers, asking Him for one thing or another. Later, upon receiving what I had asked for, I was left lamenting because things were not what I thought they would be.
+++
Therefore, don’t lament if you don’t receive instantly from God that which you had asked for. He wants to provide you with a greater benefit by forcing you to have to stand patiently before Him in prayer. Because what can be greater than conversing with God and communing with Him?
+++
Condescending to our infirmity, the Holy Spirit comes to us even when we are not chaste; and if He finds our mind occupied in genuine prayer, He then descends into it and casts out the whole crowd of thoughts and wishes, thereby disposing our mind toward pure prayers.
+++
Know that the Angels induce us toward prayers, stand with us during them, rejoicing and praying for us. But if we are careless and accept sinful thoughts, we distress our Angels. Because, while they have committed themselves for us, we are too lazy to ask God for ourselves. Worse yet, in neglecting to serve God and seemingly turning our backs on their Master, we conduct a mental conversation with unchaste demons.
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