If we trust someone, it is a sign that we have known their faithfulness deep in our heart. Similarly, we can trust God, only if we have really believed and known God’s faithfulness in our heart. Love for God is not a condition or an obligation, but something that spontaneously arises in one who has truly known God. This divine life is surely within us. It is not enough to speak eloquently about this faithfulness; we must open ourselves to receive the gentle touch of that abundant life.
To be able to trust the intimacy God, we must also examine how tenderly we are connected to ourselves. Our love and faithfulness towards God may not be perfect with all our hearts. We may not have been trained to love and be faithful in such a way, and our pains and burdens may stand as defensive walls, making it rather difficult. The pains that have not known the touch of God can solidify into images of a God who is judgmental and who acts with punishment. This can reinforce a divine image within us that is prone to blame, judge, and suggest harm. This is why due preparation is needed, alongside love and faithfulness. This preparation must also be practiced not as a condition, but as an openness.
Faith is that relationship in which our own growth and life experiences, together with the life and freedom we know in God’s goodness, become really true. Openness is the door to that profound divine experience that embraces the heart, and that is true preparation. The infinite goodness and faithfulness, a nakedness of "this is what I am," is where the truth of me is seen and known by God, where mercy is poured in, goodness is planted in a gentle spirit, and the strength needed for that is sought with the same faithfulness in a new heart. These elements together are what we must call preparation and the fear of God. The fear of God is not a trembling in fear, but a thrilling pulsation of life.
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