Day 11 – Guidance – An Advent Journey for the Discerning Heart – Discerning Hearts Podcasts

An Advent Journey for the Discerning Heart:
Prepare your heart for Christ through Scripture, the saints, and the gentle practice of daily listening.

Week Two: Following the Voice of Christ

DAY 11 – Guidance

“Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, This is the way, walk in it.”
Isaiah 30.21 RSV

---

Guidance is one of the most tender ways Christ speaks to the heart. He does not force. He does not overwhelm. He guides. He invites the soul to walk with Him, step by step, in a way that is personal, gentle, and full of peace.

Advent teaches us to expect this guidance. Christ came into the world quietly, through a path that surprised nearly everyone. God’s guidance often works the same way. It comes through small movements, quiet nudges, and interior clarity that grows over time. The discerning heart learns that guidance is rarely dramatic. It is steady and patient.

Guidance also requires cooperation. God does not reveal the entire path at once. He gives light for the next faithful step. He speaks through Scripture, through prayer, through the deep desires He awakens, and through the peace that settles when we move in harmony with His will.

To follow Christ is to trust that He knows the way even when we do not. Guidance is God’s continual gift to the listening heart.

Journey with the Saints –

St. Ignatius of Loyola

“It is characteristic of God and His angels, in their movements, to give true spiritual joy and consolation, taking away all sadness and disturbance.”
St. Ignatius of Loyola, Spiritual Exercises, Rule 1 for Discernment

Ignatius teaches that God guides the heart by giving interior movements that help us recognize His presence. These movements are not merely emotions. They are spiritual signals that draw the soul toward greater faith, hope, and love. They reveal the path toward God.

For Ignatius, guidance is recognizable because it leads to freedom. When a thought, desire, or direction brings peace, clarity, humility, and renewed strength for charity, it can be a sign of the Lord’s gentle directing hand. When it brings agitation, fear, confusion, or discouragement, it is often not from Him.

Ignatius teaches us that God guides in a way that respects our humanity and works through it. He does not bypass the heart. He illuminates it. His guidance becomes recognizable as we grow in trust and in the habit of listening.

Reflection for the Listening Heart

Today invites you to pay attention to the small movements within you. Guidance is rarely found in loud moments. It is usually uncovered in the quiet pull toward good, the gentle desire to pray, the sudden clarity that brings peace, or the unexpected strength to do what is loving and right.

God guides through these subtle movements. He also guides through the desires He purifies, through the Scriptures that speak directly into your situation, and through the peace that surrounds a faithful decision.

Ask yourself: Where do I sense the Lord gently guiding me today. What small step is He giving light for.

A Simple Practice for Today

Take one quiet moment and pray, “Lord, show me the next faithful step.” Notice any movement toward peace or clarity. Later in the day, pause again and ask, “Lord, guide my thoughts, my choices, and my heart.” Let this openness allow His direction to surface.

Prayer