Divine Providence, Free Will, and God’s Grace

“The heart has its reasons of which the mind knows nothing” (Blaise Pascal) How do we discern God’s will in the context of our life of faith and religion? When St Ignatius wrote “Take, Lord,…my entire will” as part of his Suscipe Prayer, a prayer written with discernment in mind, did he mean for us to release ourselves of any responsibility in our decision? As Fr Kevin O’Brien, S.J. advised, “God’s desire, or will, for us is the same as our deepest desire or will, because God gave us those (good!) desires in the first place!” And as Ignatius, Pascal, and Fr O’Brien make clear, the use of Contemplative Prayer involves our intellect, our emotions, and our will in the process of making a decision, always oriented towards God and done both individually and in community–2 x 2. Does the praying mantis actually pray? Or did someone inadvertently or intentionally replace the “e” with an “a” along the way? Only God knows…