Docility: A Quiet Strength of the Soul

“Make me to know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths. Lead me in your truth and teach me…” —Psalm 25:4–5

Docility is a quiet, radiant strength—a virtue of the soul that is open, receptive, and willing to be shaped by the loving hand of God. It is the posture of a heart that leans not on its own understanding but is attentive to the gentle whisper of the Holy Spirit. It is not passive, but deeply active—a surrender that engages the will and calls us to deeper trust.

In a world that praises independence and control, docility invites us to a holy dependence. It invites us to soften, to yield, to be led.

We encourage you to take time today and ask yourself: where in my life am I being invited to release control? To listen more than I speak? To trust more than I plan?

Docility begins with listening. It takes root in prayer. Like Mary at the Annunciation, we allow the Word to be planted deep within us, even when we do not fully understand. “Let it be done to me according to your word” (Luke 1:38). Her docility was not weakness, but the womb of strength. In her ‘yes’, Jesus entered the world.

What does docility looks like lived out? Here are some practical examples to follow: 

  • Receiving correction with humility, even when it stings. Maybe a friend offers a word that challenges us, or a spiritual mentor points out something in our life that needs healing. Instead of closing off, be open to receiving their guidance, allowing the Spirit to speak through them.
  • Being teachable, especially in faith. Maybe you are asked to serve in a new way in your parish, to learn something unfamiliar, or to trust Church teaching that you don’t yet understand. Docility opens your heart to the mystery of divine wisdom, trusting that the Spirit leads through the Body of Christ.
  • Letting go of our own timeline. This is a huge one! Docility meets us when we wait—when plans shift, doors close, or dreams are delayed. Instead of striving, we stretch our hearts into God’s timing, knowing that He sees the whole picture. 

This reflection titled PATIENT TRUST has become one of our go-to’s over the years. We hope it resonates with you as well, especially as you practice this virtue of docility:

Patient Trust

Above all, trust in the slow work of God.

We are quite naturally impatient in everything to reach the end without delay.

We should like to skip the intermediate stages.

We are impatient of being on the way to something unknown, something new.

And yet it is the law of all progress

that it is made by passing through some stages of instability 

and that it may take a very long time.

And so I think it is with you;

your ideas mature gradually — let them grow,

let them shape themselves, without undue haste.

Don’t try to force them on,

as though you could be today what time

(that is to say, grace and circumstances acting on your own good will)

will make of you tomorrow.

Only God could say what this new spirit

gradually forming within you will be.

Give Our Lord the benefit of believing

that his hand is leading you,

and accept the anxiety of feeling yourself

in suspense and incomplete.

—Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, SJ, excerpted from Hearts on Fire

As we move through our days, may we move with docility—bending, not breaking. Yielding, not abandoning. Listening, not resisting. Let us ask the Holy Spirit to make us pliable clay in the Potter’s hands. To live not by force, but by grace. To trust that HIS WAY IS ALWAYS LOVE IN ACTION! Amen.