Presence

May my heart rejoice in Your love, O Lord.
Let me live each day anew.

Freedom

Lord, like Saint Ignatius, I offer you my memory, understanding,
my entire will. All I ask for in return is Your love and Your grace – that’s enough for me.

Consciousness

To be conscious of something is to be aware of it. Dear Lord, help me to remember that You gave me life. Thank You for the gift of life. Teach me to slow down, to be still and to enjoy the pleasures created for me, to be aware of the beauty that surrounds me: the marvel of mountains, the calmness of lakes, the fragility of a flower petal. I need to remember that all these things come from You.

The Word of God

¹⁷The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, “Lord, in your name even the demons submit to us!” ¹⁸He said to them, “I watched Satan fall from heaven like a flash of lightning. ¹⁹Indeed, I have given you authority to tread on snakes and scorpions and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing will hurt you. ²⁰Nevertheless, do not rejoice at this, that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”

²¹At that very hour Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and the intelligent and have revealed them to infants; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will.^{, 22}All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father or who the Father is except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”

²³Then turning to the disciples, Jesus said to them privately, “Blessed are the eyes that see what you see! ²⁴For I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see but did not see it and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.”

Inspiration

The seventy who had been sent out rejoiced in what they had accomplished. They had evidence of the power and authority of God working through them. Lord, you remind us that our deeper joy is more than the deeds we perform, for we are special to you, with our names written in heaven.

We are blessed to know the Lord and live in relationship with him. We have been given eyes to see and ears to hear so that as children of God we can live in a spirit of gratitude for what we have been given. May we grow in faith and openness to God’s ongoing revelation to us.

Conversation

Do I notice myself reacting as I pray with the Word of God?
Do I feel challenged, comforted, angry?
Imagining Jesus sitting or standing near me,
I speak out my feelings, as one trusted friend to another.

Conclusion

Filled with the loving presence of God,
I ask Him to bless me and guide my steps
as I go to do His work in my daily life.

Amen