I call upon You, O my God, my mercy, who created me and did not forget me when I forgot You. I call You into my soul, which by the longing You Yourself inspire in her, You prepare for Yourself.
You sought me before I called, and urged me with many and varied calls, that I would hear You from afar, and turn, and call upon You who were calling after me.
You blotted out all my evil deeds; and You went before all my good deeds.
Because before I was, You were; nor was I anything — and yet here I am, out of Your goodness.
You did not need me. God did not need Augustine. God does not need Le. His power is not less without us. And yet — here we are. Out of His goodness. Not because He needed us. Because He wanted us.
You sought me before I called. The seeking was His. The midnight in Lubbock — He was seeking. Before I was, You were. The soul that calls upon God discovers she is calling upon the One who was already calling after her.
By the longing You Yourself inspire in her, You prepare for Yourself. Even the longing is His gift. The restless heart is restless because God made it restless. The longing is the preparation. And the God who prepares the soul — arrives in the soul He has prepared.
In Your Gift we rest; there we enjoy You. Our rest is our place.
A body by its own weight moves toward its own place. Fire tends upward, a stone downward. When out of their order, they are restless; restored to order, they are at rest.
My weight is my love; by it am I carried wherever I am carried.
We are set on fire by Your Gift; we glow inwardly and go forward. We ascend Your ways that are in our heart, and sing a song of ascents; we go upward to the peace of Jerusalem.
For glad was I when they said to me, "Let us go into the house of the LORD."
My weight is my love. Five words. The soul's weight is what it loves. Love God — carried to God. Love self — carried to self. The destination is determined by what the soul loves. The weight that carries upward is the weight of love.
When out of order — restless. Restored to order — at rest. The restless heart explained. Not random. The soul out of place, loving the wrong thing. Restored to order — loving God — the restlessness becomes rest. The rest of being in the right place.
We glow inwardly and go forward. The burning heart of Luke 24:32. We glow and we go. The song of ascents — sung while climbing. The peace of Jerusalem — reached by walking upward. The weight that carries the pilgrim? Love.
I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know Him better.
I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which He has called you, and His incomparably great power for us who believe.
Paul's prayer to the Church — that the eyes of the heart may be enlightened, and the great power for us who believe. This is a great prayer for us today to renew our faith and trust in God.
Paul prays for the eyes of the heart to be enlightened. Kempis taught the eye of pure intention. Augustine teaches the weight of love. The enlightened eye sees where love should carry the soul. The weight carries her there. Both gifts. Both grace.
His incomparably great power for us who believe. The power that makes the weight of love stronger than the weight of the world — carrying the pilgrim upward to the peace of Jerusalem.
"My weight is my love; by it am I carried wherever I am carried."
Saint Augustine · Caldas da Rainha · Day four of the Confessions · We glow inwardly and go forwardYou Did Not Need Me
God did not need us. He wanted us. Out of His goodness. He sought before we called. Even the longing is His gift.
My Weight Is My Love
The soul's gravity is what it loves. Out of order — restless. Restored to order — at rest. The destination is determined by the love.
We Glow and We Go
Set on fire by His Gift. We glow inwardly and go forward. The song of ascents, sung while climbing. The burning heart travels.
The Eyes of the Heart
Paul's prayer: enlighten the eyes, reveal the power. The eye sees where love should go. The weight carries the soul there.