Presence

Dear Lord, help me to be open to You
for this time, as I put aside the cares of the world.
Fill my thoughts with Your peace, Your love.

Freedom

If God were trying to tell me something, would I know?
If God were reassuring me or challenging me, would I notice?
I ask for the grace to be free of my own preoccupations
and open to what God may be saying to me.

Consciousness

Lord, I bring to mind everyone who has asked for my prayers, and lay them at your feet, along with all my own needs and burdens.

The Word of God

⁵When he entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, appealing to him ⁶and saying, “Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, in terrible distress.” ⁷And he said to him, “I will come and cure him.” ⁸The centurion answered, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only speak the word, and my servant will be healed. ⁹For I also am a man under authority, with soldiers under me, and I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my slave, ‘Do this,’ and the slave does it.” ¹⁰When Jesus heard him, he was amazed and said to those who followed him, “Truly I tell you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith. ¹¹I tell you, many will come from east and west and will take their places at the banquet with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven,

Inspiration

In this foreigner who comes to Jesus we have one of the best examples of faith we can find in the gospels. We recall it in every Mass as we are preparing to receive our Lord in communion. 

It brought great joy to Jesus whenever he encountered faith in those he met as with this centurion. To doubting Thomas he said, ‘You believe because you can see me. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe.’ Lord, help me to grow in my faith by using whatever little faith I have. In our prayer now we can give him this great joy by believing him and trusting in him.

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

I thank God for His gift of love
as I go forth with joy and hope
to serve His people.

Amen