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When searching for solutions on how to grow closer to God, it is common to find a number of books and articles that provide a plethora of prayers and devotions.
It can seem like the only way to get noticed by God is to amp up your prayer life with more Rosaries and litanies.
Yet most of the saints throughout history would provide a much different picture of the spiritual life.
Instead of praying formula prayers from dawn to dusk, many saints suggest simply letting God love you.
God's loving gaze
This is what St. Francis de Sales suggests in his Introduction to the Devout Life:
This is a matter, dear daughter, to which I am very anxious to win your attention, for in it lies one of the surest means of spiritual progress. Strive as often as possible through the day to place yourself in God’s Presence.
He then more specifically suggests letting God look at us with his gaze:
Consider what God does, and what you are doing;—you will see His Eyes ever fixed upon you in Love incomparable. “O my God,” you will cry out, “why cannot I always be looking upon Thee, even as Thou lookest on me? why do I think so little about Thee? O my soul, thy only resting-place is God, and yet how often dost thou wander?”
St. Francis de Sales recommends this practice throughout the day:
Be sure then, my child, that while externally occupied with business and social duties, you frequently retire within the solitude of your own heart. That solitude need not be in any way hindered by the crowds which surround you—they surround your body, not your soul, and your heart remains alone in the Sole Presence of God.
We don't have to be a monk or nun to experience God's loving gaze.
All we need to do is to be open to him and to make space for such a daily encounter.
While praying five Rosaries in a day is praiseworthy, we need to also provide time in our day to sit and listen to God and to feel his love in our heart.
