Continuing his series of talks on discernment, Pope Francis spoke at his October 12 public audience on the role of desire.

The Pope said that “discernment is a form of searching, and searching always stems from something we lack.” He went on to say that desire is “a nostalgia for fulness that never finds fulfillment, and is the sign of God’s presence in us.”

The Pontiff reminded his audience that before performing miracles, Jesus often asked the people if they wanted to be healed—suggesting “strange resistances to healing” that we all must overcome.