I love the line here comparing praying to God for spiritual healing with going to the doctor when you’re sick. It makes me reflect on health and wellness and how it’s not good to wait until that moment when you are ill to focus on your health, but rather work on your health continually by eating nutritiously, exercising regularly, and staying away from (or at least moderating) those things that can be detrimental to your well-being.

Spiritual health can be thought of in much the same way. We need regular daily spiritual nutrition and activity to maintain a healthy spiritual life. Daily prayer, the exercises of Ignatius, and good acts of will toward others are just a few ways to keep one’s soul healthy. And staying away from bad activities like doing hurtful things to others, selfish behavior, and obsessing over worldly things are ways to keep negative influences out of our lives so we have more room for the positive, and ultimately the joy of heaven.