The Unknown Path

"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 that 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 will I 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."
--Thomas Merton, Thoughts in Solitude

My friend's wonderfully poetic comments last week about the nature of fear and the blessedness of the present moment made me think of this tremendous prayer from Thomas Merton, which has now so powerfully resonated with nearly three generations. It's hard to articulate exactly what appeals so much about this prayer. Perhaps it's Merton's deep vulnerability. We can identify so clearly with his lament, "I have no idea where I'm going." And yet, there is so much hope.

Not knowing is the path to real knowing.