“We need to open ourselves to God in such a way that we are capable of hearing God say to us, individually, 'I love you!'
“This might sound pious and sentimental. It’s anything but that. Don’t be put off by simplicity. The deeper something is the simpler it will be. That’s why we have trouble understanding the deep things, be they of science of the heart. What separates the great minds … from the rest of us is their capacity to grasp the simple. Anyone can understand what’s complex, but we have trouble grasping the principle of relativity, the concept of being, the concept of love, and things about the nature of God, for exactly the opposite reason. They’re too simple. The simpler something is, the harder it is to wrap our minds around it and the more we need to make it complex in order to understand it. That’s true too of prayer. It’s so simple that we rarely lay bare its essence. It has ever been thus, it would seem.
“… Moreover since prayer is meant to be a mutual thing, it’s important too that we respond in kind: Part of affective prayer is also that we, one-on-one, with affection, occasionally at least, say the same thing to God: 'I love you!' In all long-term, affectionate relationships the partners have to occasionally prompt each other to hear expressions of affection and reassurance. It’s not good enough to tell a marriage partner or a friend just once 'I love you!' It needs to be said regularly. The relationship of prayer is no different.”
