As you know, being a Christian can be very challenging. If you truly believe Jesus is "the Way, the Truth and the Life", and genuinely try to follow His teachings, it won't be long before you discover your flaws. Sin, or our ways of offending God, can come in many forms, which is why the Church teaches that there are seven Cardinal sins. 

Disheartened

It is easy to become fearful or disheartened when we act in a way contrary to the standards set for us by Jesus, which is "Be Holy". But it is extremely important that we remember that Christianity's central teaching is to "repent".

Wisdom and Virtue

We must replace the seven Cardinal sins in our soul with the seven Cardinal virtues. As you advance in this challenge of acknowledging and understanding your errors and learning how to replace them with wisdom and virtue, you will notice that you are becoming less fearful and more peaceful. But don't be too proud of yourself; it won't be long before life gives you an opportunity to learn that you are not a saint yet!

Importance of Prayer

But you should never underestimate the absolute importance of real prayer. Either you will, or you won't make a genuine effort to pray. No-one, not even God, can force you to set time aside to pray. 

Too fearful to Pray?

But sometimes, unfortunately, people can think that God would not like it if they prayed to Him, or that God has rejected them, or we are too sinful to pray. But St. Faustina has taught us that this must never be our mindset. In her unique way, she explains a very complex spiritual issue in simple ordinary language. 

Sinful, Converted, Striving, Pure

In her Diary she writes, "A soul arms itself by prayer for all kinds of combat. In whatever state the soul may be, it ought to pray. A soul which is pure and beautiful must pray, or else it will lose its beauty; a soul which is striving after this purity must pray, or else it will never attain it; a soul which is newly converted must pray, or else it will fall again; a sinful soul, plunged in sins, must pray so that it might rise again. There is no soul which is not bound to pray, for every single grace comes to the soul through prayer". 

In the above passage, she identifies four states a soul coul be in, namely Sinful, Converted, Striving and Pure. But more importantly she teaches that whatever state our soul is in, we must always find a way to pray, no matter what challenges are in our day. 

We hope that this amazing insight from the wisdom of St. Faustina helps you in your prayer life and increases your trust in God's Mercy.