Presence

I bring myself into Your presence, O God.
May I always take time to notice and enjoy
the beauty You have created
for my pleasure.

Freedom

“A thick and shapeless tree-trunk
would never believe that it could become a statue,
admired as a miracle of sculpture,
and would never submit itself to the chisel of the sculptor,
who sees by his genius what he can make of it.” (Saint Ignatius)
I ask for the grace to let myself be shaped by my loving Creator.

Consciousness

When I return to my everyday tasks,
remind me, Lord,
that You are always there beside me.
I need never despair.

The Word of God

⁴⁵Then he entered the temple and began to drive out those who were selling things there, ⁴⁶and he said, “It is written, ‘My house shall be a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a den of robbers.”
⁴⁷Every day he was teaching in the temple. The chief priests, the scribes, and the leaders of the people kept looking for a way to kill him, ⁴⁸but they did not find anything they could do, for all the people were spellbound by what they heard.

Inspiration

In our churches every day, the Lord waits for our company with great longing. In the book of Genesis, we read that Jacob had a dream in which God spoke to him. When he awoke, he said, ‘Truly the Lord is in this place and I did not know it … How awesome this place is! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven’ (Genesis 28:16).

Sometimes we see people behave in our churches as though they were in a secular meeting hall. Do I always value it as a house of prayer? Do I recognise in faith who is present there?

Conversation

Jesus, You are always there waiting for me.
Sometimes I get bogged down
with the concerns of this life.
Grant that I may be still more often,
To know Your peace, Your calm.

Conclusion

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

Amen