Mitch Pacwa, SJ, tackles these and other questions in this comprehensive book on discernment. He says that first we need to believe in God and his moral laws and make a commitment to please him in all that we do. Then we need to pray so that we can experience the peace that can come only from God. Fr. Pacwa draws from St. Ignatius' Spiritual Exercises, using plenty of everyday examples as well as stories from Scripture to help clarify his points. He encourages readers to develop a rich prayer life and says we can learn to listen to God's powerful voice and hear him speaking lovingly to us even when we are suffering in some way.Confronts modern-day assumptions that can prevent us from being open to God's will for our lives.Emphasizes the many ways we can develop our prayer life to nourish an authentic relationship with the Lord.

    Throughout A Friendship Like No Other, renowned spiritual director William A. Barry, SJ, explores the premise that God wants to relate to us as a close friend. Barry has contemplated this idea—radical for many Christians—throughout his lifetime, and he explains that it actually traces back to the “developing revelation of God contained in the Bible.”A Friendship Like No Other offers three well-supported and practical sections: prayerful exercises to help lead you to the conviction that God wants your friendship; a close look at objections to this idea; and reflections on experiencing the presence of God and discerning those experiences. Brief, personal meditations are woven throughout. Grounded in biblical tradition and with a clear focus on Ignatian spirituality, this book offers a fresh, heart-changing approach to living joyfully in the freedom of the divine embrace.

    Francis of Assisi. The Prayer of St. Francis boldly but gently challenges us to resist the forces of evil and negativity with the spirit of goodwill and generosity. And Nerburn shows, in his wonderfully personal and humble way, how we each can live out the prayer's prescription for living in our everyday and less-than-saintly lives. "Where there is hatred, let me sow love...Where there is injury, let me sow pardon..." Expanding upon each line of the St. Francis Prayer, Nerburn shares touching, inspiring stories from his own experience and that of others and reveals how each of us can make a difference for good in ordinary ways without being heroes or saints. Struggling to help a young son comfort his best friend when his mother dies, moved by the courage of war enemies who reconcile, being wrenched out of self-absorbed depression by responding to someone else's tragedy, taking a spirited old lady on a farewell taxi ride through her town-these are the kinds of everyday moments in which Nerburn finds we can live out the spirit of St. Francis.By incorporating the power and grace of these few lines of practical idealism into our thoughts and deeds, we can begin to ease our own suffering-and the suffering of those with whom we share our lives. And, remarkably, find a way to true peace and happiness by tapping into our basic human goodness. As we open our hearts and embrace his words, St. Francis "touches our deepest humanity and ignites the spark of our divinity."Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace.Where there is hatred let me sow love, Where there is injury let me sow pardon, Where there is doubt, faith, Where there is despair, hope, Where there is darkness, light, And where there is sadness, joy...In this beautifully written book, Kent Nerburn leads us into the heart of the St. Francis Prayer and line by line demonstrates how St. Francis's words can resonate in our lives today.

    He was prompted to write down what he received, and thus was born In Sinu Jesu, whose pages shine with an intense luminosity and heart-warming fervor that speaks directly to the inner and outer needs of our time with a unique power to console and challenge. The pages of this remarkable record of spiritual communication range across, and plunge into, many fundamental aspects of the spiritual life: loving and being loved by God; the practice of prayer in all its dimensions; the unique power of Eucharistic adoration; trustful surrender to divine providence; the homage of silence; the dignity of liturgical prayer and the sacraments; the mystery of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass; priestly identity and apostolic fruitfulness; the role of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the saints in our lives; sin, woundedness, mercy, healing, and purification; the longing for heaven and the longed-for renewal of the Catholic Church on earth. Given the harmony of its content with the teaching of Sacred Scripture, Catholic Tradition, and well-known works of the mystics, it is eminently fitting that In Sinu Jesu be published in full at this time (it has been granted the imprimatur). Passages from this journal have already influenced the spiritual lives of priests, religious, and laymen—may it now give light and warmth, consolation and renewed conviction, to readers throughout the world. “In Sinu Jesu recounts the graces experienced in the life of one priest through the healing and strengthening power of Eucharistic adoration. At the same time, it issues an urgent call to all priests—and, indeed, to all Christians—to be renewed in holiness through adoration of the Most Blessed Sacrament and consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces.”—HIS EMINENCE RAYMOND LEO CARDINAL BURKE, Patron of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta “Deep consolation and a renewed gratitude for Him as He draws His friends to Himself—these are the fruits of following the meditations of this book. It will fill hearts with encouragement and joy.”—FR. HUGH BARBOUR, O.Praem., Prior, St. Michael’s Abbey of the Norbertine Fathers “The words spoken here bring such comfort, courage, and light—a longing to be with the Lord, gazing upon and adoring His Eucharistic Face and offering ourselves and our lives in reparation for sins against Love.”—FR. DAVID ABERNETHY C.O., Congregation of the Oratory of St. Philip Neri, Pittsburgh “In Sinu Jesu has the power to inflame the desire for Eucharistic adoration. It is a powerful expression of Our Lord’s thirst to draw us deeper into His friendship, to heal wounds, and thus to renew the Church.”—FR. JOACHIM SCHWARZMÜLLER, Krefeld, Germany “In Sinu Jesu is a beautiful and powerful work saturated with the kind of contagious love and holiness that can only come from reclining—like His beloved disciple—upon Christ’s breast, hearing Him whisper words of consolation and encouragement for us all.” —KEVIN VOST, Psy.D., author of The Porch and the Cross “We sometimes dismiss the interior voice, thinking that because it is within, it must be our own. But does God not dwell deep within us? Can he not speak, then, to the heart? This listener has heard Christ invite priests and all the faithful, back to the Sacrament of Love.”—DAVID W. FAGERBERG, University of Notre Dame, author of Consecrating the World

    As he recently emphasized in his first encyclical, he talks a lot about the meaning of love, the love of God and of neighbor; as well as the importance of a lived faith as a witness for our age and striving to bring faith in line with the present age.

    Eugene Boylan discusses the nature and ways of prayer, the difficulties that you’re likely to face if you don’t pray, the purpose of meditation, and more. He examines all this not from a theoretical standpoint, but from the perspective of the individual Catholic who’s trying to pray better. As such, this book offers you solid encouragement to press on in prayer.

    

    Ignatius of Loyola, the founder of the Society of Jesus, this book will help you realize the Ignatian goal of “finding God in all things.” Filled with relatable  examples, humorous stories, and anecdotes from the heroic and inspiring lives of Jesuit saints and average priests and brothers, The Jesuit Guide to Almost Everything will enrich your everyday life with spiritual guidance and history.

    In the Gospels there are few people who understand love for Jesus as well as Mary Magdalene, which is the reason she is a prophetess of eucharistic love.This work is an extended meditation on the life of Saint Mary Magdalene, known as the "Apostle to the Apostles" because the Risen Christ appeared to her first and then sent her to announce the Resurrection to the apostles. Based on the biblical texts traditionally associated with Mary Magdalene, this book helps readers to learn from her inspiring example and to enter more deeply into adoration of Jesus Christ truly present in the Blessed Sacrament.In telling the story of Mary Magdalene's profound conversion after the Lord had to expel seven demons from her soul, this book shows how she is a shining witness to the transforming power of an encounter with Jesus Christ. Mary Magdalene is the perfect model for those who have experienced the redeeming love of Christ and who seek to deepen their devotion to him and to the Eucharist.

    "There is a whole sensible world around me that I should be able to turn to Your praise." Written between 1946 and 1947 while O'Connor was a student far from home at the University of Iowa, A Prayer Journal is a rare portal into the interior life of the great writer. Not only does it map O'Connor's singular relationship with the divine, but it shows how entwined her literary desire was with her yearning for God. "I must write down that I am to be an artist. Not in the sense of aesthetic frippery but in the sense of aesthetic craftsmanship; otherwise I will feel my loneliness continually . . . I do not want to be lonely all my life but people only make us lonelier by reminding us of God. Dear God please help me to be an artist, please let it lead to You."O'Connor could not be more plain about her literary ambition: "Please help me dear God to be a good writer and to get something else accepted," she writes. Yet she struggles with any trace of self-regard: "Don't let me ever think, dear God, that I was anything but the instrument for Your story."As W. A. Sessions, who knew O'Connor, writes in his introduction, it was no coincidence that she began writing the stories that would become her first novel, Wise Blood, during the years when she wrote these singularly imaginative Christian meditations. Including a facsimile of the entire journal in O'Connor's own hand, A Prayer Journal is the record of a brilliant young woman's coming-of-age, a cry from the heart for love, grace, and art.

    This meditation on the spiritual life has inspired readers from Thomas More and St. Ignatius Loyola to Thomas Merton and Pope John Paul I. Written by the Augustinian monk Thomas à Kempis between 1420 and 1427, it contains clear instructions for renouncing wordly vanities and locating eternal truths. No book has more explicitly and movingly described the Christian ideal:

    Learn to avoid the distractions that trouble and weary your soul, and you'll soon be able to focus your energy simply on loving God!

    That's why this book is such a godsend.Fr. Lawrence Lovasik brings you simple directions for how to overcome unkind habits that can creep -- undetected -- into your behavior. If you want to make progress in the spiritual life, don't miss these insights: they'll give you years of solid help to grow in charity and truly transform your corner of the world!

    They seek counseling, practice confession, and pursue God-centered lives, yet still these genuine believers feel hopeless in finding freedom. Could they be under the influence of evil spirits? Yes, says author Neal Lozano. In Unbound, he reveals Satan's strategies and the sneaky "entrance points" Satan finds to get a toehold in a Christian's life. He helps readers acknowledge the doors they may have opened to evil influence, and shows them how to close those doors and walk in God's freedom and abundance. Lozano's focus on God and his work in the believer's life, not on intimidating aspects of evil spirits, gives this book a balanced and hopeful tone. Because deliverance is part of the ongoing, glorious work of the Holy Spirit, Unbound outlines a plan for tapping into the potent power of the gospel. It also offers guidance on how pastors, counselors, and laity can pray for others who are still bound by evil and help them to gain victory.

    Miller’s down-to-earth approach and practical nature will help you see that your relationship with God can grow and your communication with Him can get better. Parents will find Miller’s family-life experiences especially helpful.