Precept & Practice – MARCH 2 – The Really Devout Man

The really devout man does not overwhelm himself with vocal prayers and religious exercises, which leave him no breathing-space.   He aims at constant freedom of heart.   He is neither scrupulous nor over anxious, but moves on his daily road in simplicity and confidence.   He is firmly set to refuse nothing God asks of him, to yield in no way to self-love;  never to be guilty of any deliberate fault;  but at the same time he does not torment and worry himself with petty vexations.   If he falls into some error he does not fret over it, but rising up with a humble spirit, he goes on his way anew rejoicing.   He is never surprised at his own weakness and imperfection, neither is he discouraged by them – knowing that of himself he can do nothing, through God’s help, everything:  he does not trust in his own good intentions and resolutions, but solely in God’s grace and goodness.   Were he to fall a hundred times in the day he would not despair – he would rather cry out lovingly to God, appealing to His tender pity.

The really devout man has a horror of evil, but he has a still greater love of that which is good;  he is more set on doing what is right than avoiding what is wrong.   Generous, large-hearted, he is not afraid of danger in serving God, and would rather run the risk of doing His will imperfectly than not strive to serve Him lest he fail in the attempt.

Père Jean Nicolas Grou (The Hidden Life of the Soul)

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From the Introduction to Precept and Practice

The kindly welcome given to my other little books, ‘Being and Doing’ and ‘Character and Conduct,’ must be my excuse for adding another collection of extracts to the number now in circulation.

The quotations are gathered from the books of many earnest thinkers, and deal with Life in all its length and breadth, with ourselves, our characters, our plain unvarnished faults and weaknesses, our often untoward circumstances, and with all that drags us down;-  with our purposes, our religion, our love and friendships, and with all that uplifts us;-  with our relation to others, our influence and responsibilities, and finally with those stages of our journey which bring us to the Road’s Last Turn and to the Silent Land.

CONSTANCE  M. WHISHAW