Teresa Of Avila Prayer Quotes

For prayer is nothing else than being on terms of friendship with God.

Reflect carefully on this, for it is so important that I can hardly lay too much stress on it. Fix your eyes on the Crucified and nothing else will be of much importance to you.

St. Teresa of Avila wrote: 'All difficulties in prayer can be traced to one cause: praying as if God were absent.' This is the conviction that we bring with us from early childhood and apply to everyday life and to our lives in general. It gets stronger as we grow up, unless we are touched by the Gospel and begin the spiritual journey. This journey is a process of dismantling the monumental illusion that God is distant or absent.

Teresa of Avila says that the important thing in prayer is not to think much but to love much. The head is not a bad place to start our prayer journey. But if prayer stays there too long and does not begin to sink to the heart, it will inevitably become arid and frustrating.

The whole aim of any person who is beginning prayer—and don’t forget this, because it is very important—should be that he work and prepare himself with determination and every effort to bring his will into conformity with God’s will.

If a person wishes to gain freedom of spirit and not be always troubled, let him begin by not being frightened by the cross, and he will see how the Lord also helps him carry it and he will gain satisfaction and profit from everything.36

Being in love with God is never boring.15

Living things grow gradually, and communion with God, being the supreme of all living realities, likewise matures imperceptibly,

If we are to love someone completely, there can be no room for a competing love.

for mental prayer is nothing else, in my opinion, but being on terms of friendship with God, frequently conversing in secret with Him Who, we know, loves us.

Reading is of great service towards procuring recollection in any one who proceeds in this way; and it is even necessary for him, however little it may be that he reads, if only as a substitute for the mental prayer which is beyond his reach.

Teresa of Avila, a sixteenth-century Spanish mystic, wrote, “Christ has no body now on earth but yours, no hands but yours, no feet but yours. Yours are the eyes through which Christ’s compassion is to look out to the world; yours are the feet with which he is to go about doing good; yours are the hands with which God is to bless people now.

Contemplation and self-indulgence do not mix.

Depth of communion with the indwelling Trinity occurs only in a person intent on living the Gospel totally, one who is humble and patient, temperate and obedient, pure and kind, free of selfish clingings.

Diffident people often do not find it difficult to acquiesce to another’s decisions either because they are reluctant to assume responsibility for important decisions or because they fear failure and criticism.

Teresa of Avila makes the point that it isn't whether the prayers are memorized or not or said out loud or not that determines their value, but whether we pay attention to what we're saying and to whom we're speaking.

I say that had you asked about meditation I could have spoken about it and counseled all to practice it. . . . But contemplation is something else. . . . This King doesn’t give Himself but to those who give themselves entirely to Him.”4

May today there be peace within May you trust God that you are exactly where you are meant to be May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith May you use those gifts that you have received and pass on the love that has been given to you May you be content knowing that you are a child of God Let this presence settle into your bones and allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise, and love It is there for each and every one of us. —Saint Teresa of Avila

When the Lord is pleased to withdraw, the soul is left in great loneliness; yet all the possible efforts that it might make to regain His companionship are of little avail, for the Lord gives this when He wills and it cannot be acquired. Sometimes again, companionship comes from a saint which is also a great help to us.

Even among spiritually earnest men and women only a few get beyond the first purification, because they do not persevere “in treading this narrow road that leads to life”.17 These are people who never bring themselves to give up worldly values entirely. They cut corners on time given to prayer; they engage in gossip, unkind and idle words; they live comfortably themselves and do not share much with the poor; they allow themselves minor disobediences as well as the more serious rejection of magisterial teaching; they indulge in worldly amusements and expensive tastes in dining, drinking, clothing and vacations.

Let nothing disturb you. Let nothing frighten you. Everything passes away except God.

I knew from experience that my sensitivity to what scripture calls "powers and principalities" was stronger some days than others. As I biked through downtown (Cochabamba, Bolivia), I saw groups of young men loitering on the street corners waiting for the next movie to start. I stopped and walked through a bookstore stacked with magazines depicting violence, sex, and gossip, endless forms of provocative advertisement and unnecessary articles imported from other parts of the world. I had the dark feeling of being surrounded by powers much greater than myself and felt the seductive allure of sin all around me. I got a glimpse of the evil behind all the horrendous realities that plague our world-extreme hunger, nuclear weapons, torture, exploitation, rape, child abuse, and various forms of oppression-and how they all have their small and sometimes unnoticed beginnings in the human heart. The demon is patient in the way it seeks to devour and destroy the work of God. I felt intensely the darkness of the world around me. After a period of aimless wandering, I biked to a small Carmelite convent close to the house of my hosts. A very friendly Carmelite sister spoke to me and invited me into the chapel to pray. She radiated joy, peace, and yes, light. She told me about the light that shines into the darkness without saying a word about it. As I looked around, I saw the images of Teresa of Avila and Therese of Liseaux, two sisters who taught in their own times that God speaks in subtle ways and that peace and certainty follow when we hear well. Suddenly, it seemed to me that these two saints were talking to me about another world, another life, another love. As I knelt down in the small and simple chapel, I knew that this place was filled with God's presence. Because of the prayers offered there day and night, the chapel was filled with light, and the spirit of darkness had not gotten a foothold there. My visit to the Carmelite convent helped me realize again that where evil seems to hold sway, God is not far away, and where God shows his presence, evil may not remain absent for very long. There always remains a choice to be made between the creative power of love and life and the destructive power of hatred and death. I, too, must make that choice myself, again and again. Nobody else, not even God, will make that choice for me.

Let nothing disturb the silence of this moment with You, my Lord.

The indwelling presence is the focal point of prayer. We need no wings, only a place of silence where we can center our gaze (upon Him).” —St. Teresa of Avila

At the end of your life, you will be recognized if you are familiar and intimate with the King of Kings, as one who is not a stranger but a friend. You cannot claim friendship and intimacy with someone you do not know or ever speak to. Prayer is nothing less than an intimate relationship with the loving God who Himself is your life and salvation. God came in the flesh so that you might know Him as both fully human and fully divine. You must commit to knowing Him in the same way you know your closest friend — and more so — and this is done through prayer. Without prayer, you will never find your way into and through the castle.

concern for honor is devastating for prayer.122

63 St. John of the Cross, Counsels to a Religious on How to Reach Perfection, no. 2, p. 662. 

Dreaming Big Dreams When dreams come true, there is life and joy. Proverbs 13:12 NLT Are you willing to entertain the possibility that God has big plans in store for you? Hopefully so. Yet sometimes, especially if you’ve recently experienced a life-altering disappointment, you may find it difficult to envision a brighter future for yourself and your family. If so, it’s time to reconsider your own capabilities … and God’s. Your Heavenly Father created you with unique gifts and untapped talents; your job is to tap them. When you do, you’ll begin to feel an increasing sense of confidence in yourself and in your future. It takes courage to dream big dreams. You will discover that courage when you do three things: accept the past, trust God to handle the future, and make the most of the time He has given you today. Nothing is too difficult for God, and no dreams are too big for Him—not even yours. So start living—and dreaming—accordingly. The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams. Eleanor Roosevelt The future lies all before us. Shall it only be a slight advance upon what we usually do? Ought it not to be a bound, a leap forward to altitudes of endeavor and success undreamed of before? Annie Armstrong Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God. Corrie ten Boom You pay God a compliment by asking great things of Him. St. Teresa of Avila Our dreams are who we are. Barbara Sher Always stay connected to people and seek out things that bring you joy. Dream with abandon. Pray confidently. Barbara Johnson God created us with an overwhelming desire to soar. He designed us to be tremendously productive and “to mount up with wings like eagles,” realistically dreaming of what He can do with our potential. Carol Kent Allow your dreams a place in your prayers and plans. God-given dreams can help you move into the future He

The devil makes you think you are poor and makes even others who practice prayer think this of themselves. And he is somewhat right because you have promised poverty -- orally, that is. I say orally, for it is impossible that, if with the heart we understand what we promise and then promise it, the devil could draw us for twenty years and even our whole lives into this temptation; 'impossible,' because we would see that we are deceiving the world and our own selves.

first, she spent a great deal of time in the Outer area. Everything there beckoned to her. Shops, theaters, restaurants - all crooned a siren song of attraction, craving, and the “easy familiarity” of her former life. But, as time passed, the alluring melody rang off-key and she began to feel the weight of invisible burdens. In contrast, whenever she stole away to the Temple of Prayer, Mundana felt a return of the peace and delight given to her by the touch of God’s love. She experienced pleasure in prayer, which now flowed freely from her lips and heart.

No matter what the outer appearance of things may be, let me think of the “bookmark prayer” of Saint Teresa of Avila: Let nothing upset you, Let nothing afright you. Everything is changing; God alone is changeless. Patience attains the goal. Who has God lacks nothing; God alone fills all her needs.

the person who lacks a practical understanding of the stages of prayer and the mystical life places themselves at a distinct disadvantage, especially when hardships come. For instance, the person who doesn't understand that progress in prayer often means long dry spells devoid of all consolation can easily turn away from the true path and become a kind of religious "thrill seeker", gladly pursuing all those trendy New Age styles of mind-blanking prayer and a preoccupation with the self rather than the Divine.

If we are truly striving to focus on Christ, rather than just being lazy in our prayer, Saint Teresa counsels us not to worry about distractions and difficulties. Worrying will only make them worse. We must do the best we can and most of all simply show up every day to be with God in prayer.

But very few of us were taught how to practice mental prayer. We feel embarrassed or tongue-tied when we try to speak to God from our hearts. What are we supposed to say? Unless someone instructs us as adults, our mental prayer is likely to be a rambling monologue about our day or a list of petitions.

A prayer in which a person is not aware of whom he is speaking to, what he is asking, who it is who is asking and of whom, I do not call prayer, however much the lips move.

mental prayer, which I have already described, and which consists in thinking of what we are saying, understanding it, and realizing Whom we are addressing, and who we are that are daring to address so great a Lord. To think of this and other similar things, such as how little we have served Him and how great is our obligation to serve Him, is mental prayer.

we shall not fail to observe the fasts, disciplines and periods of silence which the Order commands; for, as you know, if prayer is to be genuine it must be reinforced with these things--prayer cannot be accompanied by self-indulgence.

People still complain, however, as did St. Teresa of Avila four centuries ago, of the lack of knowledgeable spiritual guides. What should one do if he cannot find a competent director? It is my opinion that in the area of advancing prayer, as also in this matter of alleged communications, no direction is preferable to probably incompetent direction