JOY AND PRAYER

 

JOY AND PRAYER

 

"I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you and your joy may be complete."    That's Jesus in the Gospel of John   (15:11).   Do we believe him?

 

Joy runs like a bright thread through the Old and New Testaments.   Abraham and Sarah laugh for joy at the improbable birth of their son Isaac.   The very first word of the very first psalm is "happy."   Jesus speaks of joy, the disciples experience joy at the resurrection,  and St. Paul lists joy as one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit.   So why do we have a hard time including joy in our prayer?

 

Perhaps because we sometimes forget that Jesus of Nazareth was joyful, delighting in the company of children,  enjoying himself at wedding parties,  and visiting friends like Mary and Martha and Lazarus.   He is not just the "Man of Sorrows" but the "Man of Joys."

 

So the next time you pray,  why not make a list of the things that bring you joy?   That list could include something funny that your children or grandchildren,  or nieces or nephews, said to you.   Or things that consistently cause joy, like the good human of a close friend.  Or the deep-down knowledge that Christ is risen and that he has promised to be with you always.   Make a "joy inventory," and then share that with God in prayer.   Think of God listening to you and being joyful with you in turn.

 

Smile with God, and imagine God smiling with you.   And let your joy be complete.

 

 (written by Fr. James Martin, SJ,  p. 7 in the August issue of GIVE US THIS DAY, a daily missalette from Liturgical Press.) 

PRAYING FAITHFULLY, even with the monkeys

PRAYING FAITHFULLY

 

(This reflection was written by Sr. Chris Koellhoffer, IHM, for the daily Catholic devotional:  LIVING FAITH - written for the August 31st readings, it offers an important reflection for us about distractions and other issues that arise in our prayer lives.)

 

At the conclusion of a contemplative prayer session I was leading, a woman approached and asked if I might share with her what was unfolding in me as I sat in perfect stillness in the chapel.   After a pause,  I replied,  "Monkeys."   In response to her rather confused expression, I explained that, although exteriorly I may appear to be centered and quiet in prayer,  I continually struggle with what the Buddhists call "monkey mind," that interior chatter that goes on within me when I engage in meditation, as if a dozen monkeys were all clamoring for attention.

 

Years ago I was quite discouraged at my failure to silence the monkey mind and live a tranquil prayer life.   With wisdom,  I've come to believe that God calls us not to perfection, but to faithfulness, to continually starting over, starting fresh, starting anew, and not giving up.

THE SUNFLOWER PRAYER

(sunflower in the friary garden)

 

THE SUNFLOWER PRAYER

 

I turn my face to you, O Lord,

Source of all light,

Source of all living.

 

Small though I may be,

Meager my offerings,

I stretch out my arms to offer You

All that I have, all that I am.

Though my soul be weak and weary,

Bent by heat and wind and rain,

I am your humble servant, Lord.

May my simple gifts be pleasing in your sight.

 

Guide my growth with gentle hands, O Lord.

Feed me full with your sustaining light.

Quench my thirst, O radiant Life-giver.

Raise me to thrive, steady and sure,

On your infinite love and mercy.

 

And when, at last, my little life has passed again to earth,

Gather me to your heart and set me at your table,

that I may gaze forever, Lord --

O Light,  O Love,  O Infinite Life --

On your ever glorious face.

 

(This poem was composed by Julie L. Rattey and appeared in the March 2009  CATHOLIC DIGEST)

NEW LOOK AT THE FRIARY

(main building with chapel  &  guest rooms)

 

This summer found the friars here at Our Lady of the Angels rolling up the sleeves and attending to the needs of our 40 + year old buildings;   all the buildings were pressure washed, a wall was taken off and replaced in the two story section, and the main building and the guest wing were stained and water sealed.    Br. Steve Dupuis, OFM and his maintenance crew from the Franciscan parish in Greenwood, MS came and spent a week doing the largest part of the project.   The remainder of the job (the 3 smaller buildings need to be stained and water sealed and another wall needs to be replaced) will hopefully be done sometime in 2014.

 

 

IMAGES OF GOD AND PRAYER

IMAGES OF GOD AND PRAYER

 

What's your favorite image of God?   Creator?   Source of All Being?   Father?  Mother?

 

Our images of God naturally influence our relationship with God in prayer.   For example, if you think of God as angry or vengeful, it may be difficult to be open and honest in prayer or to feel intimacy with God.   In my experience,  people sometimes relate to God in the ways they have related to other authority figures in their lives.   If your parents or teachers were demanding, you may be inclined to see God as demanding.   But this can severely limit our understanding of God because, needless to say,  God is not our mother or father.  God is always bigger than our experiences,  and our imaginations, too.

 

One all-too-common image is God as the unforgiving judge, ready to pounce on you for the slightest transgression.   Yet in the Parable of the Prodigal Son, Jesus presents us with a completely different image (Luke 15: 11-32) .  The father welcomes home his wayward son not with condemnation and vengeance but with love and mercy.   And for those who have a difficult time imagining God,  I always suggest the same thing:   Look at Jesus in the Gospels.   Look at Jesus and you will see God.

 

Over time, our images of God may change, which is all to the good.   As the Jesuit Carlos Valles wrote:  "If you always imagine God in the same way,  no matter how true and beautiful it may be, you will not be able to receive the gift of the new ways God has ready for you." 

 

(This reflection is by Fr. James Martin, SJ,  and appears in the July issue of  GIVE US THIS DAY,  p. 7, a  missalette published by Liturgical Press -- www.giveusthisday.org)