You need grace to be able to know, love, and serve God so you need to pray to God to grant you these graces. They come in abundance through attending Mass and receiving Holy Communion. Especially after Holy Communion ask Jesus to help you know Him. You can use written prayers found in prayer books or your missal or preferably just speak from your heart spontaneously.
You can also make "Spiritual Communions" throughout the day which means God unites you with Himself in an entirely spiritual way and gives you grace. A Spiritual Communion differs from a Sacramental Communion in that in a Sacramental Communion you receive both the Humanity and Divinity of Christ--His two natures whole and entire, Body, Blood, Divinity. In a Spiritual Communion you receive only His Divinity. Many saints made Spiritual Communions throughout their day in order to be more closely united to God at all times. One saint is said to have made 200 a day! I don't recall which saint that was. It was a female. Each Spiritual Communion gives grace and is a wonderful thing to do if you can't get to a Mass on Sunday especially. It also reminds you of God constantly throughout your day which helps keep you on the straight and narrow. How do you do this? You can say a formal prayer such as are found in prayer books or just ask Jesus to come to you spiritually because you desire to receive Him sacramentally but can't and to grant you the graces you would receive if you were able to communicate Sacramentally right then and there. St. Alphonsus has a beautiful pray for this.
Go to Confession often, even if you have no mortal sins to confess. The cleaner the soul is, the more receptive it is to God's grace.
Every single day ask pardon of God for your sins and failings and the grace to know and do His Will. Examine your conscience daily and perform some penance or mortification for your failures to do His Will. It need not be anything extraordinary. God will give you ideas if you ask Him for them. When we sin, we do not glorify God. We need to do something to make up for this glory of which we have deprived Him. Prayers and penances help us do that. That's why you are given those in Confession, but you can and should do them on your own as well as those prescribed by the priest when he hears your confession. This helps keep your soul in good shape and you mindful of how easily you fall into sin and imperfections which in turn reminds you of how much you need God every single moment of your life in order to remain in the state of grace and pleasing to Him.
Every day pray for the grace of a good death and the grace of final perseverance, which means that you will die pleasing to God and not in the state of mortal sin. Ask Our Lady to obtain the grace of final perseverance for you when you say the Rosary. You can also obtain this grace by making various devotions where the grace has been promised in return for the devotion but you must practice the devotion sincerely and not just for the graces promised. The grace of final perseverance is a free gift of God and not something we can merit. It is MOST important to pray for this because your most severe temptations will probably come at the hour of your death. St. Joseph is the patron saint of a good death. Begin asking him now to help you die well no matter how old or young you are. No one knows the time of their death; only God knows.
Then you must apply yourself to reading and meditating upon what you read. The Gospels hold first place in spiritual reading, for they are the very words of God Himself made Man. Study that God-Man you see there in the Gospels. Think about what He says, how He acts, what He commands of people. Then in prayer to Him talk to Him about what you have read. Ask for understanding about what seems confusing to you. Talk to Him as simply as you would with a good friend but always with reverence. He is the perfect Model for humans to follow in order to live a life that is pleasing to God. Compare His life, His teachings to your own and where the two differ, ask Him to grant you grace to change what needs to be changed. Then work on changing it! Mere words of supplication won't suffice. Actions must follow petitions.
You can further your understanding of Him by reading good versions of His Life. I won't recommend any particular ones as there are many and people feel differently about them, but I personally do not like the Poem of the Man-God and I stay away from it. Ask the Holy Spirit to guide you in your choice of reading material and then read what you feel drawn to read as long as it is approved by the Church and preferably an edition that came out before Vatican II.
Pray the Rosary every day and beg Our Lady to help you know, love, and serve God as She did. She was conceived without sin and She had a free will just like the rest of us, so She could have sinned had She ever chosen to, but she never did. She will obtain many graces for you if you take your spiritual life seriously and really try to do your best to profit from these means.
Pray often to God the Holy Spirit to give you good inspirations and guidance, especially before you read any spiritual works. Ask for understanding and memory of what you read and knowledge about how to apply the advice you read to your own life. Then follow through and do it.
Ask your Guardian Angel to remind you throughout your day of the good intentions you made in prayer and to help you do God's Will. That's one of the reasons you have a Guardian Angel.
In essence, place your soul in the hands of God and ask Him to help you do what He commands, which is what you asked about in your post. He Who said "Ask and you will receive; seek and you will find; knock and it will be opened to you" will not go back on His word.
There are many good books about how to live a good spiritual life. Read, read and read!! Then think and pray about what you read. Follow what you feel drawn to read and see if you increase in virtue or peace of soul from reading it. That's a good sign you read something good for your soul.
As already mentioned, the Imitation of Christ is a fantastic book to begin with. I also like St. Alphonsus Liguori's works because his own advice is excellent and he also quotes other saints which led me on to read those particular saints' works and that's how the ball starts rolling and over time you find yourself accuмulating knowledge from various saints' writings.
Also, read the lives of the saints -- especially those with whom you have something in common like your state in life or a particular cross you must carry or a temptation you must deal with. Ask for their help and get to know them. St. Teresa of Avila once wrote: "It's necessary that we speak to, think about, and become the companions of those who having had a mortal body accomplished such great feats for God." (Interior Castle, Seventh Mansion, Chapter 7).
All of this might sound very complicated and overwhelming as you read it now but take it step by step and you will see how it all flows along like a peaceful river. Go at a pace that feels comfortable to you. God will guide you. He will not let go of your hand once you offer it to Him for guidance.
The mere fact that you want to do this is proof that He wants this of you and will give you the grace to do it if you just cooperate with Him. How is it proof? Because fallen human nature does not like to follow, to obey. It wants independence. You desire to follow God and be obedient to Him.
And the devil would certainly not want you to learn to love God and live for Him! Although--he might try to tempt you to take on too much at once or become impatient with yourself and tempted to discouragement or despair as you get to know yourself and your failings. Don't fall for these tricks. They are common temptations for beginners in the spiritual life. As soon as you feel any of this, pray immediately to God or Our Lady to rescue you from these temptations. They will. Bless yourself, preferably with Holy Water, whenever you feel tempted.
Go slow and steady, have patience with self, attend Mass and go to Confession and receive Communion as often as you can. Pray the Rosary daily. Read spiritual books and pray afterwards while thinking about what you read. Examine your conscience daily and ask pardon of your sins and failings and the grace to do better. These are great means of defeating all temptations and receiving graces and accomplishing what you want to do, which is why you were created to begin with.
Topic: AMDG (Read 3007 times)