Discerning Hearts

Day 14 – Dryness – An Advent Journey for the Discerning Heart – Discerning Hearts Podcasts

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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 14 – Dryness

“O God, thou art my God, I seek thee, my soul thirsts for thee; my flesh faints for thee, as in a dry and weary land where no water is.”
Psalm 63.1 RSV

Dryness is one of the most common and most misunderstood experiences in the spiritual life. It is the season when prayer feels flat, when God seems distant, and when the heart feels unable to respond with its usual warmth. Advent does not hide this reality. It teaches us to listen through it.

Dryness is not abandonment. It is not punishment. Dryness is often the moment when God invites us to love Him with purity rather than feeling. When the heart no longer leans on emotion, it learns to lean on faith. When prayer no longer feels easy, we discover whether we truly desire God or only the comfort His presence brings.

Dryness has a purpose. It strengthens fidelity. It clarifies intention. It deepens trust. It teaches the soul to stay with Christ even when the path feels dark or barren. In these moments, the discerning heart remains steady, not because it feels God, but because it chooses Him.

God often speaks quietly within dryness. His voice becomes gentle and small. To listen in dryness is to stay at His side even when the way is not clear.

Journey with the Saints –

St. Teresa of Calcutta

“I look and do not see, listen and do not hear.”
From her private letters, Come Be My Light

St. Teresa of Calcutta endured decades of interior dryness while continuing to radiate charity. Her letters reveal a profound experience of feeling the absence of God while living a life completely anchored in Him. She continued to pray, to serve, and to choose love even when she felt no consolation at all.

For St. Teresa, dryness became a participation in the thirst of Christ. She believed that remaining faithful in dryness was itself an offering of love. Her fidelity in prayer did not flow from emotion. It flowed from trust. She teaches us that in dryness, God invites the soul to cleave to Him in a deeper and more selfless way.

St. Teresa’s witness shows that holiness does not depend on how we feel. It depends on how we love, especially when the heart feels nothing in return.

Reflection for the Listening Heart

Today invites you to acknowledge the times when prayer feels empty or when God seems far away. Dryness reveals how easily the heart relies on feelings rather than faith. Yet dryness is often the place where the deepest spiritual growth happens, because it calls the soul to choose God for His sake alone.

You do not need to fix dryness. You only need to remain in it with Christ. He is with you even when you feel nothing. He is closer than you know. Dryness becomes holy when it is offered in love and when it teaches the heart to persevere gently and faithfully.

Ask yourself: How is Christ inviting me to remain with Him in dryness today. What small act of fidelity can I offer even when I feel nothing.

A Simple Practice for Today

Spend one quiet minute saying, “Lord, I choose You.” Let this be your offering in dryness. Later in the day, repeat the same prayer slowly, without pushing for feeling or clarity. Let it be a simple act of fidelity.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, be with me in dryness. When my heart feels empty, remain near. Teach me to choose You even without consolation. Strengthen my faith so I may love You with a steady heart. Help me to stay close to You in this quiet place where You work in hidden ways. Amen.

For more of the episodes of
An Advent Journey for the Discerning Heart with Kris McGregor visit here

Citations for Day 14

Psalm 63.1 RSV
St. Teresa of Calcutta, Come Be My Light (private letters)

© Discerning Hearts. All rights reserved.

Day 13 – Surrender – An Advent Journey for the Discerning Heart – Discerning Hearts Podcasts


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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 13 – Surrender

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own insight. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.”
Proverbs 3.5 to 6 RSV

Surrender is the quiet, interior movement that releases control and entrusts everything to God. It is not resignation. It is not passivity. True surrender is an act of love. It opens the heart so God can work in ways we cannot manage or foresee.

In the spiritual life, surrender is never one single moment. It unfolds slowly, often through repeated invitations. God does not force surrender. He gently asks for it. Advent teaches this rhythm. God approaches, and the heart responds. The heart loosens its grip again and again as trust deepens.

Surrender is not a feeling. It is a decision. It says, “Lord, You know what I cannot see. You lead, I follow.” Surrender frees the heart from fear, softens resistance, and clears space for grace to move. In surrender, the listening heart learns to recognize Christ’s voice with greater clarity.

Journey with the Saints –

St. Charles de Foucauld

“Father, I abandon myself into Your hands. Do with me what You will. Whatever You may do, I thank You.”
St. Charles de Foucauld, Prayer of Abandonment

St. Charles de Foucauld lived surrender as the center of his spiritual life. His entire mission began not with clarity or certainty, but with a willingness to entrust everything to God. His famous Prayer of Abandonment reveals a heart that desired nothing but God’s will, carried in absolute trust.

For St. Charles, surrender was the path to intimacy with Christ. He believed God could work most freely in a heart that held nothing back. His surrender was not dramatic. It was steady, simple, and offered in love. He accepted obscurity, hiddenness, and daily poverty as places where Christ wished to dwell with him.

St. Charles de Foucauld teaches that surrender is not weakness. It is confidence in God’s goodness. It is the interior posture that allows grace to guide what we cannot control. His life shows that surrender opens a space where Christ can make His home.

Reflection for the Listening Heart

Today invites you to notice what you are holding tightly. Where are you grasping for control. Where do you fear what you cannot predict or understand. These places point to the invitation to surrender.

Surrender is not giving up responsibility. It is giving God permission to lead. It allows the heart to rest without demanding answers first. When surrender grows, the voice of Christ becomes easier to hear. Pressure softens. Anxiety loosens. Grace becomes visible.

Ask yourself:
What am I carrying that I cannot carry alone?
What would it look like to place this in God’s hands today?

A Simple Practice for Today

Hold your hands open in prayer and quietly say, “Father, I entrust this to You.” Name one burden, fear, or desire. Later in the day, repeat the gesture briefly as a reminder that God carries what you release to Him.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, teach my heart to surrender. Help me let go of what I cannot control and trust Your wisdom and love. Give me the grace to follow You with the quiet courage that filled the heart of Blessed Charles de Foucauld. Lead me step by step, and let my surrender become a place where You dwell. Amen.

For more of the episodes of
An Advent Journey for the Discerning Heart with Kris McGregor visit here

Citations for Day 13

Proverbs 3.5 to 6 RSV
St. Charles de Foucauld, Prayer of Abandonment

© Discerning Hearts. All rights reserved.

Day 12 – Interior Movement – An Advent Journey for the Discerning Heart – Discerning Hearts Podcasts

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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 12 – Interior Movement

“I will bless the Lord who gives me counsel. In the night also my heart instructs me.”
Psalm 16.7 RSV

Interior movement is the gentle way God guides the listening heart. It is subtle. It often arrives quietly, as a small prompting, a shift of desire, a deepening peace, a check within the conscience, or a quiet sense of direction. These movements are not dramatic. They work from the inside out. Christ leads the heart through grace that touches thoughts, affections, and choices.

Interior movements are part of how the Good Shepherd speaks. Instead of overwhelming the soul, He nudges it. Instead of forcing clarity, He invites attention. When the heart becomes aware of these movements, discernment becomes possible. We begin to notice which movements draw us closer to God and which movements pull us away.

Interior movement is not emotional fluctuation. It is the activity of grace within the soul. It is Christ shaping the desires, quieting unhelpful impulses, strengthening hope, deepening peace, stirring courage, or illuminating a small next step. The discerning heart learns to recognize these movements and follow them with trust.

Advent invites us to become sensitive to these interior movements so we may follow Christ with greater freedom.

Journey with the Saints –

St. Francis de Sales

“God’s inspirations prepare our hearts and make us want to receive His grace.”
St. Francis de Sales, Treatise on the Love of God, Book 2, chapter 12

Francis de Sales was a master of understanding the interior life. He teaches that God’s movements within the heart are gentle, attractive, and never violent. Grace draws the soul. It never pushes. God inspires first. Then the heart responds. This is how love works.

For Francis, interior movement begins with God’s initiative. The soul feels drawn toward a desire for prayer, a longing for patience, a renewed tenderness toward another person, or a quiet urge to trust God more deeply. These stirrings are not from the self. They are invitations from the Lord.

Francis also teaches that interior movements require a peaceful, receptive heart. If the soul is hurried, anxious, or overly focused on self, it can miss these gentle inspirations. But when the heart grows calm and attentive, it becomes more aware of how God is guiding from within.

He reminds us that interior movements are always rooted in love. God stirs the heart so we can draw closer to Him.

Reflection for the Listening Heart

Today invites you to notice what is happening inside. What desires are stirring. What feels drawn toward God. What feels pulled away. What interior movements seem to nudge you toward patience, gratitude, or prayer. What movements trouble your peace.

Interior movements are one of the primary ways Christ guides us. You do not need intense experiences. You simply need attentiveness. When you sense a quiet draw toward something good, pause long enough to ask, “Lord, is this from You.” When you sense an interior resistance or tightening, pause again and ask, “Lord, what are You showing me.”

Ask yourself: What movements within me today might be the gentle work of grace. How is Christ trying to guide me from the inside.

A Simple Practice for Today

At least once today, pause for thirty seconds and gently name the interior movements you feel. Say, “Lord, let me follow the movements that come from You.” Later, pause again and notice: Did any movement lead you closer to God.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, guide my heart through Your gentle movements. Teach me to notice the stirrings that come from Your grace. Quiet the impulses that pull me away from You and deepen the desires that lead me closer. Give me a receptive heart that listens, trusts, and follows Your inner guidance. Amen.

For more of the episodes of
An Advent Journey for the Discerning Heart with Kris McGregor visit here

Citations for Day 12

Psalm 16.7 RSV
St. Francis de Sales, Treatise on the Love of God, Book 2, chapter 12

© Discerning Hearts. All rights reserved.

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


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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

Lord Jesus, You are my Shepherd and my guide. Lead me in the way I should go. Open my heart to notice the gentle movements of Your Spirit and give me the courage to follow them. Teach me to trust the light You give for each step. Draw me along the path that brings me closer to You. Amen.

For more of the episodes of
An Advent Journey for the Discerning Heart with Kris McGregor visit here

Citations for Day 11

Isaiah 30.21 RSV
St. Ignatius of Loyola, Spiritual Exercises, Rule 1 for the Discernment of Spirits

© Discerning Hearts. All rights reserved.

Day 10 – Peace – An Advent Journey for the Discerning Heart – Discerning Hearts Podcasts


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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 10 – Peace

“Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”
John 14.27 RSV

Peace is not something the world can create. It is the gift of Christ Himself. Advent invites the heart to receive this peace, not as a feeling that comes and goes, but as a Presence that remains. The peace Christ offers does not depend on circumstances. It does not rise or fall with events. It flows from His nearness.

The world’s peace is fragile. It depends on everything going well. Christ’s peace is different. It enters the heart even in weakness, loss, and uncertainty. It is steady because He is steady. It is strong because He is strong. It is calm because He is calm.

Peace does not mean the absence of struggle. It means the presence of Someone greater within the struggle. The discerning heart learns to lean on this peace and to return to it throughout the day. Christ desires to form a quiet center within us where His presence is our rest.

Advent helps us welcome this peace so it can shape the thoughts we think, the choices we make, and the way we encounter the world.

Journey with the Saints –

St. Elizabeth of the Trinity

“May nothing trouble my peace or make me leave You, O my Unchanging One, but may each minute carry me further into the depths of Your Mystery. Give peace to my soul; make it Your heaven, Your beloved dwelling and Your resting place.”
St. Elizabeth of the Trinity, Prayer to the Trinity

St. Elizabeth of the Trinity understood peace as the fruit of God dwelling within the soul. For her, peace was not the result of control or certainty. It was the result of surrender. She trusted that God was at work in the hidden depths of her soul even when she felt nothing.

Elizabeth teaches us that peace grows when the heart stops fighting its circumstances and begins resting in God’s presence. She believed that the soul becomes a dwelling place for God when it welcomes His peace and allows Him to quiet its movements.

Her teaching shows that peace is not created by the soul. Peace is received. It is the gift of the indwelling God.

Reflection for the Listening Heart

Today invites you to notice where your peace is easily shaken. What unsettles you. What pulls your heart into anxiety or fear. These moments do not mean you lack faith. They reveal where Christ desires to bring deeper healing.

Peace grows when the heart returns to Christ again and again. Even a simple turning of the heart can invite His calm into a moment of confusion. Peace becomes a way of seeing, a way of breathing, a way of listening.

Ask yourself: Where is Christ offering me His peace today. What would it look like for me to rest more deeply in Him.

A Simple Practice for Today

Pause once this morning and once this evening. Place your hand over your heart and say slowly, “Jesus, give peace to my soul.” Breathe gently and let His presence quiet you. Return to this prayer whenever you feel troubled.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, You are my peace. Quiet the thoughts that trouble me and calm the fears that rise within. Make my soul a dwelling place for Your presence. Teach me to rest in Your peace in every moment and to trust the strength of Your love. Deepen in me the peace that only You can give. Amen.

For more of the episodes of
An Advent Journey for the Discerning Heart with Kris McGregor visit here

Citations for Day 10

John 14.27 RSV
St. Elizabeth of the Trinity, Prayer to the Trinity

© Discerning Hearts. All rights reserved.

Day 9 – Courage – An Advent Journey for the Discerning Heart – Discerning Hearts Podcasts


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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 9 – Courage

“Wait for the Lord. Be strong, and let your heart take courage. Yes, wait for the Lord.”
Psalm 27.14 RSV

Courage is the grace that strengthens the heart to follow Christ even when the path feels uncertain or overwhelming. Advent forms this courage by teaching the soul to trust God’s presence more than its own fear. Courage is not boldness. It is not confidence in ourselves. It is confidence in God.

True courage does not mean the absence of fear. It means the heart chooses faith in the midst of fear. It is the inner movement that says, “I do not see the whole way, but I will take the next step because God is with me.” Courage rises when the soul remembers that Christ has already gone ahead.

Courage is also a virtue. It is fed by grace. It grows when the heart draws strength from God rather than from its own resources. The discerning heart learns that courage is not something we manufacture. It is something we receive when we lean on the One who steadies us.

Advent reveals that Christ comes into our fear, not after it disappears. He gives courage by His nearness.

Journey with the Saints –

Pope St. John Paul II

“Do not be afraid. Open wide the doors to Christ.”
St. John Paul II, Homily at the Mass for the Inauguration of His Pontificate, 22 October 1978

St. John Paul II understood that courage is born from trust in Christ. His life bore the marks of suffering, loss, and oppression, yet his heart remained steady because it was anchored in the presence of God. His courage was not human strength. It was divine confidence.

For St. John Paul, courage begins with opening the heart to Christ. Fear narrows the heart. Courage expands it. Fear closes the doors. Courage opens them. He believed that when Christ enters the heart, grace strengthens it to face any darkness, not by removing the struggle, but by filling it with light.

He knew that the heart grows courageous when it accepts God’s love and surrenders any attempt to control outcomes. He teaches us that courage is the fruit of letting Christ stand within us.

Reflection for the Listening Heart

Today invites you to notice places of hesitation within your soul. What feels uncertain. Where do you sense resistance. Courage does not demand that you overcome fear before you move. It asks you to take one small step with Christ, trusting that He steps with you.

Courage grows when the heart remembers past moments of grace. Think of times God has been faithful to you. Think of times when you feared the path ahead but discovered His presence waiting for you. That memory strengthens courage now.

Ask yourself: Where is God asking me to take a small courageous step. How can I rely on His strength rather than my own.

A Simple Practice for Today

Take one moment today to pray slowly, “Lord, strengthen my heart.” Identify one small step of trust and take it with intention. Later in the day, repeat the prayer as a reminder that courage is a grace you receive, not a task you achieve.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, give courage to my heart. Help me trust that You are with me in every uncertainty. Strengthen me with Your grace so I may follow where You lead. Steady my fears and fill me with the confidence that comes from Your presence. Teach me to take each step with You. Amen.

For more of the episodes of
An Advent Journey for the Discerning Heart with Kris McGregor visit here

Citations for Day 9

Psalm 27.14 RSV
St. John Paul II, Homily for the Inauguration of His Pontificate, 22 October 1978

© Discerning Hearts. All rights reserved.

The 2nd Sunday of Advent – Building a Kingdom of Love with Msgr. John Esseff – Discerning Hearts Podcast

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The 2nd Sunday of Advent – A Call to Wake Up, Repent, and Enter the Light of JesusBuilding a Kingdom of Love with Msgr. John Esseff

In this Advent reflection, Msgr. John Esseff turns to the figure of John the Baptist and the call to repentance that prepares the way for the Lord. He explains that John stands at the culmination of Old Testament prophecy, announcing the arrival of the Messiah and calling all people to conversion. Yet Jesus teaches that the least in the kingdom is greater than John, because Christians carry Christ within them. This means the true tragedy is not simply breaking commandments but failing to live as Christ in the world.

Msgr. Esseff then guides listeners through examples of interior patterns that separate the soul from union with Jesus. He speaks about judgmental attitudes, envy, lust, unforgiveness, gluttony, and other deep tendencies that distort the heart. Each one acts like a hidden disease that wounds the life of Christ within the person. Advent becomes a time to uncover these wounds through honest examination and to bring them to the Lord for healing.

He urges listeners to call upon the Holy Spirit, who reveals the core wound with gentleness, not accusation. The Spirit convicts with light and love, while the enemy accuses and discourages. Confession is offered as a powerful path to healing, where the cross penetrates the soul and restores union with Christ.

Msgr. Esseff encourages priests to open the confessional during Advent and calls all Christians to stop judging one another and instead direct loved ones to the Holy Spirit, who alone can reveal the truth of the heart. Advent is presented as a privileged time to awaken, repent, and prepare for the coming of the Lord, who desires to bring healing, renewal, and unity to every soul.

Discerning Hearts Reflection Questions

  1. What interior pattern or tendency separates me most from Christ right now?
  2. When I examine my heart, do I hear the accusing voice or the gentle clarity of the Holy Spirit?
  3. Where have I allowed judgment, envy, or resentment to shape my thoughts or relationships?
  4. What wound or habit is the Holy Spirit inviting me to bring to confession this Advent?
  5. How can I prepare my heart to welcome Christ more deeply during this season?

 

Msgr. John A. Esseff is a Roman Catholic priest in the Diocese of Scranton.  Msgr. Esseff served as a retreat director and confessor to St. Teresa of Calcutta.    He continues to offer direction and retreats for the sisters of the Missionaries of Charity around the world.  Msgr. Esseff encountered St.  Padre Pio,  who would become a spiritual father to him.  He has lived in areas around the world,  serving in the Pontifical missions, a Catholic organization established by Pope St. John Paul II to bring the Good News to the world, especially to the poor.  Msgr. Esseff assisted the founders of the Institute for Priestly Formation and continues to serve as a spiritual director for the Institute.  He continues to serve as a retreat leader and director to bishops, priests and sisters and seminarians, and other religious leaders around the world.  

Day 8 – Hope – An Advent Journey for the Discerning Heart – Discerning Hearts Podcasts

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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 8 – Hope

“Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful.”
Hebrews 10.23

Hope is the quiet strength that anchors the heart in God’s promises. It is a theological virtue, not a feeling we generate. God Himself pours it into the soul through grace. Because of this, hope is steady even when circumstances shift, even when emotions rise and fall, even when darkness feels close.

Hope looks at God before it looks at the problem. Hope remembers that God keeps His promises. The greatest fulfillment of those promises is the gift of Christ, given at a moment in history when all seemed lost. Advent teaches us to return to this truth every day. Christ is the proof that God keeps His word.

Yet hope is not only about the great moments of salvation history. It is also about the personal ways God has been faithful in your life. Each moment He sustained you, guided you, protected you, forgave you, or brought you through something difficult becomes a touchstone of hope. Hope grows when the heart remembers.

Hope does not deny suffering. It meets suffering with trust in a God who is larger than every fear and stronger than every obstacle. Hope believes that God is already present and already at work.

Journey with the Saints –

Ven Bruno Lanteri

“Do not lose heart. Be confident. God is love.”
Venerable Bruno Lanteri

Venerable Bruno taught that Christian hope rests entirely on the mercy and fidelity of God. He understood hope as a grace that lifts the soul when it feels weak or discouraged. His famous spiritual counsel, “Begin again,” expresses this beautifully. Hope always makes it possible to take the next step toward God.

For Ven. Bruno, hope was not optimism. It was confidence in God’s character. He believed that no failure, no weakness, and no discouragement could block the action of grace if a soul continued to turn toward God with trust. Hope leans on God, not on self.

Ven. Bruno also insisted that hope grows when a person remembers God’s past faithfulness. Every grace God has already given becomes a promise of what He will continue to do. Hope expands the heart to expect God’s goodness again.

Reflection for the Listening Heart

Today invites you to let your heart rest in God’s fidelity. Hope grows when you stop trying to hold everything together and allow God to carry what you cannot. Hope remembers that God has led you before and He will lead you again.

Look back over your life. Where has God kept His promises to you. Where has He shown you love, direction, or protection. These memories are seeds of hope. They strengthen your trust in the God who remains faithful.

Ask yourself: Where do I need hope today. How is God inviting me to remember His faithfulness?

A Simple Practice for Today

Recall one moment in your life when God was clearly present. Thank Him for it. Later in the day, pray quietly, “Lord, You have been faithful. Strengthen my hope.” Let this remembrance become a place of trust.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, strengthen within me the virtue of hope. Help me to trust in Your promises and to remember the many ways You have been faithful. Pour Your grace into my heart so I may rest in Your love and look to You with confidence. Teach me to hope in You always. Amen.

For more of the episodes of
An Advent Journey for the Discerning Heart with Kris McGregor visit here

Citations for Day 8

Hebrews 10.23 RSV
Venerable Bruno Lanteri, spiritual writings

© Discerning Hearts. All rights reserved.

Day 7 – Trust – An Advent Journey for the Discerning Heart – Discerning Hearts Podcasts

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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 7 – Trust

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own insight. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.”
Proverbs 3.5 to 6

Trust is the foundation of recognizing the voice of Christ. Before the heart can follow the Shepherd, it must believe that His voice is steady, loving, and faithful. Trust allows the soul to rest in God even when clarity has not yet come. Trust strengthens the listening heart, because it teaches us to lean on God rather than on our own interpretations.

Trust does not remove uncertainty. It transforms it. When the heart lives in trust, uncertainty no longer becomes a barrier. It becomes a space where God reveals Himself. Trust says, “Lord, even when I do not see, I know You are guiding me.”

In the spiritual life, trust matures when we stop grasping for control. We often long for explanations. We want to know how God will act or what will come next. But Advent prepares us for a God who arrives in ways we do not expect. Trust keeps the heart open to receive Him.

Trust is a daily choice. It is the movement of the heart that leans toward God, especially when the way forward is dim or unclear. Christ guides those who trust Him, and trust teaches the heart to recognize His whispers.

Journey with the Saints –

St. Joseph

“When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him.”
Matthew 1.24

St. Joseph is the quiet master of trust. Scripture gives us no recorded words from him. His entire relationship with God unfolds in listening, obedience, and surrender. Joseph trusts God without demanding full understanding. He accepts God’s direction even when it disrupts his plans and overturns what he thought his life would be.

Joseph responds to God with a heart that moves quickly toward obedience. He listens not only with his ears, but with his whole life. He surrenders his expectations, his anxieties, his own judgments, and even his need to understand. Joseph shows that trust is not passive. It is an active openness to God’s will, even when the path is hidden.

His quiet example teaches us to let God lead. In Joseph, we see trust that yields, trust that listens, and trust that acts.

Reflection for the Listening Heart

Today invites you to notice where you struggle to trust. Trust often becomes difficult when life feels uncertain or when prayer seems unanswered. Yet trust grows not by having more control, but by releasing the desire to control everything. Trust is a gentle turning toward the One who loves you.

Ask the Lord to show you the places where your heart holds back. These are often the places where He desires to draw near. Trust begins when we allow God to enter those guarded areas and guide us forward step by step.

Ask yourself: Where is Christ asking me to trust Him today. What part of my heart needs to lean more fully into His care.

A Simple Practice for Today

Lord Jesus, teach my heart to trust You. Help me release my need to understand everything and rest in Your faithful love. Give me the grace to follow Your voice even when the way is unclear. Make my trust steady and simple, like St. Joseph’s, and guide my heart into Your peace. Amen.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, teach my heart to trust You. Help me release my need to understand everything and rest in Your faithful love. Give me the grace to follow Your voice even when the way is unclear. Make my trust steady and simple, like St. Joseph’s, and guide my heart into Your peace. Amen.

For more of the episodes of
An Advent Journey for the Discerning Heart with Kris McGregor visit here

Citations for Day 7

Proverbs 3.5 to 6 RSV
Matthew 1.24 RSV

© Discerning Hearts. All rights reserved.

Day 6 – Conversion – An Advent Journey for the Discerning Heart – Discerning Hearts Podcasts


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

Week One: Awakening the Listening Heart

DAY 6 – Conversion

“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
Matthew 4.17

Conversion is not a single moment. It is a continual turning toward God. Advent teaches this ongoing movement of the heart. Conversion is the steady, daily action of choosing God again and again. It is the refusal to remain still in spiritual life. It is the willingness to move toward the One who is constantly drawing near.

Conversion is not dramatic for most people. It is usually quiet. It is the moment when you realign your heart after noticing you have drifted. It is the instant you choose truth over distraction, love over indifference, prayer over noise. Every turn toward God, no matter how small, becomes a doorway for grace to enter.

True conversion is active. It responds to God’s initiative. God always makes the first movement. Conversion is our movement back. The discerning heart knows this is a lifelong rhythm. We turn toward Him again in moments of light, in times of weakness, in days of clarity, and in seasons of confusion.

Conversion prepares the heart for deeper listening. It keeps the soul awake, open, and progressing toward Christ.

Journey with the Saints –

St. Catherine of Siena

“Be who God meant you to be, and you will set the world on fire.”
Attributed to St. Catherine of Siena

St. Catherine understood conversion as a continual rising into the fullness of who God created you to be. She teaches that conversion is not a narrowing of the spiritual life. It is the steady work of grace that expands the heart. As the heart expands, it becomes more capable of receiving God’s love and more available to give that love to others.

For St. Catherine, this expansion happens through humility and surrender. When the soul releases fear, pride, or self-reliance, the heart opens wider to God’s action. Every movement toward Him increases the heart’s capacity for charity, courage, and truth. Conversion stretches the heart so it can hold more of God and give more of God.

St. Catherine reminds us that conversion unfolds gradually. It is a lifelong process of allowing God to shape, widen, and mature the heart until Christ’s life becomes the center of everything.

Reflection for the Listening Heart

Today invites you to reflect on where your heart is turned. Conversion is not about perfection. It is about direction. You may drift at times. You may feel distracted. You may recognize places where you have resisted God. Conversion turns you back, even gently, even quietly.

Ask God to show you where He is inviting you to turn toward Him again. Perhaps in a relationship. Perhaps in prayer. Perhaps in a place where fear holds you back. Every turn toward God strengthens the listening heart.

Ask yourself: Where is Christ calling me to turn toward Him today. What step of conversion is He inviting me to take.

A Simple Practice for Today

Take one moment today and say, “Lord, turn my heart toward You.” Then choose one concrete act of love, forgiveness, or faith that reflects that turning. Later in the day, repeat the simple prayer as a way of renewing your direction.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, turn my heart toward You again. Draw me away from anything that leads me from Your love and strengthen every desire that leads me closer to You. Teach me to live conversion as a daily movement of grace. Help me to turn, and turn again, until my heart rests fully in You. Amen.

For more of the episodes of
An Advent Journey for the Discerning Heart with Kris McGregor visit here

Citations for Day 6

Psalm 46.10 RSV
St. Teresa of Avila, Poem “Nada te turbe,” line 1

© Discerning Hearts. All rights reserved.