Faith and hope lead us to want to have what we believe in and hope for. The more we want it, the more we learn to love it and want to concentrate on it. Our turning to God is made easier if we take practical steps, which include turning away from other things which attract and distract us and going apart in solitude, being still so that we can listen to God.
The mind thinks of the self as separate, the heart knows better. As one great Indian master, Sri Nisargatta, put it, "The mind creates the abyss, and the heart crosses it."