The more I pray, the more God is God in me. It is not that God changes: He cannot be more God or less God. He is always the same. He is immutable and unchangeably present in me. But to the degree to which my relation with Him becomes closer, the closer I feel His presence within me, for me.
A comparison: the room is completely dark. It is impossible to see anything. We light a match: we can see something: a table, some books, a few chairs. We light five matches: we can see much more: other tables, many chairs, paintings on the wall. We light fifty matches: it is a beautiful room, but there are still some dark spots in the back of the room. We light fifteen hundred matches: the room is an unforgettable spectacle of beauty, colors, and figures.
Did the room change? It remained identical, the same as before. However, for me, everything changed. What happened? The light brought the room to life for me. The light made the features of the room visible for me. As I lit more matches, the room became progressively more real to me.
The same thing happens with God. When we never pray, God is like a dark room, an empty word, a Mister Nobody. When I begin to pray, God starts to make His presence felt within me. As I pray more, God becomes more and more Someone for me as the light of His face shines upon me. That is, each time, God feels closer, more alive and more present within me.
Not only that. One also begins to contemplate the light of His face. The things that happen around me, the persons or circumstances that I observe with my senses take on new significance. They appear to be covered with the light of His presence, framed with His will. It is not that the facts and the things are magically covered with the divine light, but rather that when the eyes of man are full of God, everything that
those eyes contemplate appears to be adorned with God.
According to the degree by which we move this process forward, new desires to be with God are born. And depending on the time we frequently and profoundly spend with Him, our difficulties will be overcome in Him, by Him, and with Him. We bear ordeals with peace. We overcome disgust. Our failures do not destroy us. Where there was violence, now there is gentleness. We happily assume sacrifices and are reborn to spread love and the joy of life.
Extracted from the book “Transfiguration”, by fr Ignacio Larrañaga
