When You Can't See the Road Ahead

"My Lord God,

I have no idea where I am going.

I do not see the road ahead of me.

I cannot know for certain where it will end,

nor do I really know myself,

and the fact that I think I am following your will

does not mean that I am actually doing so.

But I believe that the desire to please you

does in fact please you.

And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing.

I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire.

And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road,

though I may know nothing about it.

Therefore, I will trust you always, though

I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death.

I will not fear, for you are ever with me,

and you will never leave me to face my perils alone."

A discernment prayer written by Thomas Merton, Trappist Monk (d. 10 Dec 1968)

A Person Standing on a Cliff Overlooking the Sea during Golden Hour · Free Stock Photo

Intercede for me, my dear Thomas, and pray for my spiritual sons and daughters so that we may have a stable foundation of deep prayer and a ministry of healing the afflicted. Please keep me close so that I may have strength to walk with everyone who comes for confession and spiritual guidance. Thank you for inspiring me during the earliest days of my life and for exemplifying what it means to live as a contemplative and a writer.

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