".. experience the painful truth that we are not all we should be."
That is one way to realize the need to change toward all we should be.  
However, that is somewhat like looking at dirty rag and try to pick off the dirt when it needs to be thrown away. 
God is immanent in us and omnipresent in universe.
Another way is to practice letting go of your thoughts to enter into God himself! 
Your EGO is in your I-thoughts.  It is your EGO that separates you from God.
  
 'Silence is a sword in the spiritual struggle. A talkative soul will never attain sanctity. The sword of silence will cut off everything that would like to cling to the soul. (…) A silent soul is strong; no adversities will harm it if it perseveres in silence. The silent soul is capable of attaining the closest union with God. It lives almost always under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. God works in a silent soul without hindrance.' Faustina Kowalska, The Diary, 477.