'Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.' (1 Thessalonians 5:16)
'These brief ascents of the soul heavenward, these liftings of the mind and heart to God, briefly but frequently: this is what enables the monk… to live a life of prayer and intimate union with God. As (he) goes about his daily duties, he… gives himself to this practice of terse but frequent prayer.' (Wilfrid Tunink OSB, Vision of Peace, pp. 277-278)
Do I try to remember to pray aspirations (short, inner prayers) throughout the day?
What are my favorite aspirations? Perhaps some of the following are among them...
My God and my all!
Jesus, I trust in You.
My God, I adore You.
Lord, enclose me in Your Heart.
Holy Trinity, one God, have mercy on us.My God, I love You.
Into Your hands, Lord, I commend my spirit.
From all sin, deliver us, O Lord.
O Jesus, with all my heart I cling to You.
My Jesus, mercy.
My Lord and my God.
Blessed be God!
Painting at top: Winslow Homer, Winding Line
So, the tug of the human spirit today is towards mental prayer. To win the battle in the mind. Nancy, last year, on the Feast of the Holy Cross, I went through a sudden drying of the spirit. I had been through such 'episodes' before, and they had ranged from weeks to years. But that day, from light and joy, the very next second, I went into anguished darkness, which heightened with every passing hour. Well after sunset, when the torment seemed almost unbearable, I heard a voice say to me:
ReplyDeleteCommend your spirit into the Hands of My Mother.
In my entire life, never had I heard of this variation of the prayer on the Cross. But the turmoil that day was so bad so I grabbed that lifeline of a prayer. I said the line over and over, and each time, the tempest abated little by little. Very soon it was over.
From that day on Sept 14th, Mother Mary, I commend my spirit into Your Hands has been my first morning prayer.
Caitlynne Grace, that is beautiful! Thanks be to God for such an inspiration, and for the lasting fruit of it. Thank you very much for sharing this.
DeleteThank you for this reminder to pray without ceasing...
ReplyDeleteThanks, Christine.
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