Discernment of Spirits

 One of the most valuable tools I have picked up along the way is that of spiritual discernment.  St. Ignatius of Loyola taught this practice as one of his spiritual exercises.  When he was incapacitated because of his war wounds, he noticed that when he read the adventure stories he loved, those of war and romance, his spirit was left restless and agitated.  However, when he read the lives of Christ and of the saints, his spirit was rested and peaceful.  So he taught his followers to pay attention to the effect that different activities had on their spirits.

This morning, I had a good lesson in spiritual discernment.  I sat down to pray, but first decided to check my messages and email --- probably not the best practice.  I have not been on Facebook for a very long time, for a good reason.  But my email this morning told me that I was missing a message from a friend I had not seen or heard from in a while.  I clicked on her FB page to catch up with her, and then, of course, found myself checking on other people I know.  (That's the reason I avoid FB altogether -- it's a huge time-waster.)

At first, I did not realize the effect of my FB scrolling on my spirit.  But as I finally picked up my morning prayer page, I felt my spirit returning to the peace and calm that prayer usually brings.  The transition was so notable that it made me reflect on where I had been before prayer entered my soul --- and I felt the agitation and unrest left behind by social media.

In a world where we pay attention to everything except the state of our souls, it is no wonder that there is so much dissension, hostility, "cancel culture," and animosity.  We are not peaceful within, and therefore, we cannot live at peace with other people.

St. Ignatius recommends that each evening, we reflect on the moments of the day when we felt God was present and acting -- those moments of joy, of peace, of being at-one with ourselves and others.  Further, he recommends that we thank God for those moments, allowing them to lead us into fellowship/friendship with God.  We can also reflect on the not-so-good moments of the day and on the things that caused a rupture in our souls.  These things, too, can become sources of prayer -- and of knowing ourselves. 

There is a reason the Greek philosopher said, "Know thyself...."  The gift of discerning how people and events affect us can lead us straight into the arms of God.