O God, the King of glory, you have exalted your only Son Jesus Christ with great triumph to your kingdom in heaven: Do not leave us comfortless, but send us your Holy Spirit to strengthen us, and exalt us to that place where our Savior Christ has gone before; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, in glory everlasting. Amen.
Tag: Prayer
Prayer for Pentecost
O God, the King of glory, you have exalted your only Son Jesus Christ with great triumph to your kingdom in heaven: Do not leave us comfortless, but send us your Holy Spirit to strengthen us, and exalt us to that place where our Savior Christ has gone before; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, in glory everlasting. Amen.
Prayer for the Day on the National Day of Prayer
O God, the King eternal,
who divides the day from the night
and turns the shadow of death into the morning:
Drive far from us all wrong desires,
incline our hearts to keep your law,
and guide our feet into the way of peace;
that, having done your will with cheerfulness while it was day,
we may, when night comes,
rejoice to give you thanks;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The call of prayer is to listen
Nonetheless, it is possible that, even in prayer itself, we could refuse to let ourselves be confronted by the freedom of the Spirit, who acts as he wills. We must remember that prayerful discernment must be born of a readiness to listen: to the Lord and to others, and to reality itself, which always challenges us in new ways. Only if we are prepared to listen, do we have the freedom to set aside our own partial or insufficient ideas, our usual habits and ways of seeing things. In this way, we become truly open to accepting a call that can shatter our security, but lead us to a better life. It is not enough that everything be calm and peaceful. God may be offering us something more, but in our comfortable inadvertence, we do not recognize it. — Pope Francis, APOSTOLIC EXHORTATION GAUDETE ET EXSULTATE OF THE HOLY FATHER FRANCIS ON THE CALL TO HOLINESS IN TODAY’S WORLD
Too often our mantra is, “Listen, Lord, for your servant is speaking!” We need to say more often, “Speak, Lord, your servant is listening.”
Ignorance of the Word
Reading for Today:
Psalm 55, 74
Lam 2:1-9
2 Cor. 1:23-2:11
Mark 12:1-11
In his march to the Cross, Jesus goes straight at the religious leaders. When spiritual authority is gone, all that is left is theological wordplay, manipulation, and outright intimidation. It still happens today. Continue reading “Ignorance of the Word”
Heal us of our blindness
Reading for today:
Psalm 51; 69:1-23
Lam. 1:1-12
2 Cor. 1:1-7
Mark 11:12-25
Lam. 1:5
Her foes have become her masters;
her enemies are at ease.
The Lord has brought her grief
because of her many sins…
Prayer:
Lord, we are blind and our blindness is simply stunning. All the advantages have been afforded us and we have become lost in our own comfort and abundance. We are desperately in trouble and do not see it. Heal us of our blindness. Tough us with your healing power so we can see before it’s too late and we wake up only to realize our enemy isn’t worried about us anymore. In this Holy Week, please favor us with a healing touch so our eyes are opened. Lead us to the cross.
Love without pretense
Reading for Saturday:
Psalm 102, 108, 33
Ex. 2:23-3:15
1 Cor. 13:1-13
Mark 9:14-29
Reading for Sunday:
Psalm 118, 145
Ex. 3:16-4:12
Rom. 12:1-12
John 8:46-59
Thoughts from Mark 9: Continue reading “Love without pretense”
