When you hold a banquet, invite the poor …

When you hold a banquet, invite the poor,
        the crippled, the blind.  Luke 14:13

As a tennis fan, I admired the Brazilian star Gustavo Kuerten, who spent some time as the number one player in the world in the late 1990s.  Along with his tremendous talent, he always used to have a huge smile on his face regardless of the score.  He looked as if he really enjoyed the game, the crowds, the excitement.  During his playing years, he was widely regarded as one of the most sportsmanlike in the game.

At the peak of his career, I read about his habit of traveling with his severely disabled brother.  Gustavo would regularly take him to all the fancy parties and banquets on the tennis circuit.  It must have been a study on contrasts seeing this young man in a wheelchair making his way through a room full of tanned and toned world-class athletes. If Gustavo did not sensitize people towards acceptance of the disabled, he surely impressed them with his fraternal devotion.

Dear Lord, may I always reserve a place at my table for the needy.

— Paul Pennick

Message of Christmas Love

There is an old Christian tradition that God sends each person into this world
        with a special message to deliver,
        with a special song to sing for others,
        with a special act of love to bestow.
    no one else can speak my message,  
        or sing my song,
        or offer my act of love.
    These are entrusted only to me.

According to this tradition, the message may be spoken, the song sung, the act of love delivered
        only to a few,
        or to all the folk in a small town,
        or to all the people in a large city,
        or even to all the people in the whole world.
    It all depends on God's unique plan for each person.

At this holy time of Christmas, when we are recalling the fact that God so loved the world
that He sent his Son into the world for us, I want to say this to you:
        Your message has been heard in my heart,
        Your song has warmed my world,
        And your love has brightened my darkness.
Thank you, thank you for your message, your song, your love.
You will always be in my own grateful heart and prayers.

— St. Vincent de Paul

(A Christmas message sent to his friends.)

Dear and gracious God,

Dear and gracious God,
Help me to live this day
Quietly, easily
To lean upon Thy great strength
Trustfully, restfully
To wait for the unfolding of Thy will
Patiently, serenely
To meet others
peacefully, joyfully
To face tomorrow
Confidently, courageously

—Author unknown

The Lord will be My Confidence

The Lord will be my confidence … Proverbs 3:26

We may think we are placing our trust in the Lord, but if we look more closely, we may see that we are sometimes actually placing it in other things.  What kind of things? How about a healthy bank account, a secure job, a unique talent, our own intelligence or personality, a specific way of praying, a particular charismatic leader or just plain good health? As vital as these things may be to us, they pale in comparison to our personal relationship with the God who knows and loves us more than we can imagine.

But this passage from Proverbs goes on.  It reminds us that serving the Lord means serving others.  It doesn't mean worshiping in a certain way or judging others by their orthodoxy or cocooning ourselves from the world's messy problems. No, serving God means serving others.  It's as simple - and as challenging - as that.  Whom shall I serve today?

Loving God, help me to serve you more by serving the unique individuals you put into my life every day.  Amen.

Sr. Melannie Svoboda, S.N.D.

Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.

Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain wisdom of heart.

— Psalm 90:12

Where I live in northeast Ohio, September is when the fall foliage is in full glory.  Everywhere I look I behold trees of bright red, orange, yellow and even gold.  It's a sight that amazes me every year, one I never take for granted.  As I watch the leaves falling, I find myself saying, "What a way to go!  In such splendor!"

The beauty and predictability of fall help me to believe in the goodness and constancy of God.  Fall comes.  Summer is over. Winter is on its way.  And even though fall appears to be a season of death, it isn't really.  The trees are not dying. Their precious vitality is stored in their intricate root systems beneath the ground.  When outward circumstances change (and they will), these same trees will sprout brand new green leaves. Fall is the sign of the ingenuity of God.  When things appear to be dead, new life bursts forth.

Source of All Wisdom, help me to see possibilitieswhere I am tempted to see only death.  Amen.

— Sr. Melannie Svoboda, S.N.D.

Prayer for the People of Haiti

Lord God, months have now passed since the earthquake
that devastated Haiti. In that time many have reached out to help
but the needs of this poor nation stretch on and on.
Help us to help, through our prayers, our donations,
our direct service, but most of all through our love and care.
May we serve you in the least of our brothers and sisters,
in Haiti, in our own country and wherever we encounter them. Amen.

From "Living Faith"
Daily Catholic Devotions

Prayer of the Week

Why do you notice the splinter in your brother's eye but do not perceive the wooden beam in your own.

Luke 6:41

I never read this passage without feeling that it was written precisely for me. My core sins, I'm sorry to say, have changed very little throughout my life. I am arrogant.  I am critical.  I am ungrateful.  I am small.  Sure, the particulars change a little.  Those sins express themselves differently one day to the next.  Still, those are my greatest faults in a nutshell.  Sometimes they seems to sound around me like variations of a terrible theme. They are the beam in my eye that I somehow overlook to find fault with everyone around me.

Maybe someday God will relieve me of my sins.  Maybe someday humility and generosity and gratitude will pour forth from me like water.  More likely, I will labor for the rest of my life.  I suppose that is what discipleship is - not being perfect, but striving to become better than we are, today and again tomorrow and all the days after that.  Jesus Christ overcame sin for us. Maybe our job is to keep overcoming our own particular sins, as many times as it takes.

Lord God, help me overcome my sins.

Karla Manternach

Number Our Days Aright

Teach us to number our days aright
that we may gain wisdom of heart.

Psalm 90:12

We will find wisdom, the psalm says, if we count our days correctly.
I decided to follow the Psalm's advice.  This is a fitting time
to total up the days that I have been privileged to possess,
since this week I celebrate my birthday.

I did the math and discovered that, as of today, I have lived 27,277days.
Some of these are clearly etched in my memory
but most days have lost their individuality and are now remembered
only as time gone by. Counting my days has made me
much more appreciative of each new day as precious gift.
That is the wisdom, no doubt, which the psalmist promises.
I know the current number is far into the second half of life,
but I don't know the final count. However, Psalm 90 says
we are given 70 years of life and 80 if we are strong.
Wisdom advises me to fill each day with good works,
prayer and kindness and to place all the days of my life
in the hands of God who controls all time and eternity.

Thank you God, for all the days of life.

Fr. James McCarns

Prayer for Economic Security

Lord, you are the rock of our lives, the source of all true stability.
Grant that your people might find their security in you first of all.
Help them find meaningful employment during their working years
and a measure of comfort in their retirement. Help us all to learn
to live within our means so that we can help those in our neighborhood
and across the globe who have less than we do.

Replace the fear in our hearts with gratitude,
and give us confidence in your providence.
May we hope in the future and in blessings and opportunities of today.

Amen.

—Mark Neilsen

Nothing Will Disturb Me

My God, you who are charity and love itself,
    help me to love myself  in you, for you ,and by you,
    and my neighbor for your sake.
May I possess you as my sole treasure and my one glory,
    far dearer than all creatures.
Grant that I may rejoice in your perfect love for me,
    and in the eternal love borne for you
    by all the angels and saints who see you face to face.

Grant that my neighbors may be able to bear the burdens
    as I wish to bear mine.
Let them care for nothing but you,
    and only for those things that will lead them to you.
Above all else, help me always to remember
    that I have only one soul, and that I have only one short life
    that must be lived by me alone,
    that I have only one death to die,
    and that there is only one glory that is eternal.

If I do this as you have promised,
    there will be many things I will not care about at all.

Nothing will disturb me.

St. Teresa of Avila

Love is Patient, Love is Kind

Love is patient, love is kind.

— 1 Corinthians 13:4

Certainly patience is a virtue. Patience is a mark of good character.

But why precisely, must love be patient?

Love is patient, of course because God is love,

and how patient God is with you and me!

I think about all the missteps in my life,

the habits that have built up walls between me and God

and between me and others whom God has sent into my life.

I think about the times I have listened

to every other voice out there but God's.

But God still loves, unfailingly.

And the love that is poured out for me -

quite concretely in the loving, patient sacrifice of Jesus -

where is it to go? To others, in love. Patient, forgiving, merciful love.

Loving God, you are so patient with me.

Help me love others as you love me.

Amy Welborn

Give and gifts will be given to you …

Give and gifts will be given to you …

shaken down, and overflowing …

Luke 6:38

It's an odd thing in our culture that the most generous

among us are so often those with the least.

Maybe they already know that what they have is gift.

They know that they are not entitled to it,

so they are willing to share it with those around them.

Affluence seems to cloud this knowledge:

The more we have, the more we seem to have a

sense of entitlement. "I've worked hard to get where I am"

is a sentiment we affluent tend to have,

as though working hard enough were enough.

But each of us who has "made it" has to have had some break,

some opportunities that others didn't have

or couldn't take advantage of for reasons beyond themselves.

No one is truly self-made. Indeed, we have already been

showered with gifts "shaken down and overflowing."

I pray that all of us can someday see that everything we have

is gift and give to others out of the great abundance God promises.

Aileen O'Donoghue

O Loving God, give me the grace to share generously today

with those less fortunate than I. Amen.

But now we must celebrate and rejoice …

Luke 15:32

Embarrassing as it is to acknowledge this,

I often feel like the Prodigal Son's older brother.

I completely understand his sentiments.

He was not able to rejoice over another's good fortune

because he was focusing on whether the

recipient of his father's love was truly deserving.

He was also wallowing in his own imagined neglect:

I've been faithful all these years, and no one even noticed. Poor me!

This Gospel offers marvelous material for prayer and reflection for each of us.

Are we able to rejoice with another because of some good gift they've received

whether it be some material gift, a promotion or new opportunity, an affirmation or reward?

Or has our fountain of joy dried up because we are foundering in our own misery?

Look deep within your heart to see if there may be a bit of rejoicing you are withholding.

Practice being glad because of another's good fortune.

Oh most merciful One, teach me to throw a party for the unworthy.

knowing that I may be the guest of honor. Amen.

Sr. Macrina Wiederkehr, O.S.B

O Lord My God, In You I Take Refuge

Psalm 7:2

God as refuge and shield for us is a frequent image in the psalms.

But how do words become flesh in our lives?

How do we get the words off the page and into our hearts?

It requires more than just saying the words to experience

God being our refuge. It takes more than reciting beautiful phrases

to have a felt sense of God being a protective shield for us.

It requires unrelenting practice in remembering the presence of God.

Practice walking in the presence of God today. Let the Holy One be

a refuge for you in your confusions and fears.

O Holy One, you have pitched a tent in my heart.

You are my shelter, my tree of life.

You are my cave, my haven, my abode.

You are the sanctuary where I dwell.

I do not ask you to free me from the storms of life

that help me grow.

I ask only that you protect me

and help me make wise choices. Amen.

– Sr. Macrina Wiederkehr, O.S.B.

Sacred Heart Prayer

O Divine Beloved,

so often I am casual and half-hearted

in my love for you, my God.

Come and set my heart ablaze

with the fire of your love.

Inflame my heart and prayers

as you did for your chosen Son Jesus.

His holy heart was constantly on fire

with a consuming love for you, his God.

Envelop me in your flaming Spirit,

that my lukewarm prayers and acts

may spring alive with the fire of faith.

Make my heart, like the heart of Christ,

burn with compassion for the outcast,

with comfort for the lonely

and all who are in need.

May my heart thus formed

in the pattern of his Sacred Heart

become a fiery furnace

where the Kingdom will be forged,

the age of peace and justice.

Grant this prayer in the name of your Son,

who dwells with you and the Holy Spirit,

One God, forever and ever. Amen.

– Edward Hays

What gives us peace? What keeps our hearts from being troubled or afraid?

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you ...

Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid.

(John 14:27)

What gives us peace? What keeps our hearts from being troubled or afraid?

One answer that touches me I heard from a lovely older woman named Betty.

It was in a summer program class I was teaching at Notre Dame,

and we were talking about dealing with troubles in life: difficulties,

challenges, losses. Betty shared with us a process that really helped her.

She said, "Someone once taught me this secret: "When we are sad, in pain,

very worried about something, ask: 'Could this be labor?' And then,

instead of fighting the pain or sadness or fear, give in to it, letting it take you

to the birthing. Surrendering to the birthing brings with it hope,

a trust that some new life it coming to your soul, is coming to the world."

Mothering God, source of life for all of us, help us trust that when we are troubled and afraid, you are with us helping us give birth to life.

Patricia Livingston

A Prayer from Merton

My Lord God,

I have no idea where I am going.

I do not see the road ahead of me.

I cannot know for certain where it will end.

Nor do I really know myself,

and the fact that I think I am following your will

does not mean that I am actually doing so.

But I believe that the desire to please you

does in fact please you.

And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing.

I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire.

And I know that if I do this,

You will lead me by the right road,

though I may know nothing about it.

Therefore will I trust you always

though I may seem lost in the shadow of death.

I will not fear, for you are ever with me,

and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.

Thomas Merton

Morning Prayer

Gracious God, thank You for the gift of today.

Refresh me … Invite me …

to discover Your presence in each person that I meet

and every event encountered.

Teach me when to speak and when to listen

when to ponder and when to share.

In moments of challenge and decision

attune my heart

to the whisperings of Your Wisdom.

As I undertake ordinary and unnoticed tasks,

gift me with simple joy.

When the day goes well, may I rejoice!

When it grows difficult

surprise me with new possibilities.

When life is overwhelming, call me to Sabbath moments

to restore Your Peace and Harmony.

May my living today reveal Your goodness. Amen.

Author Unknown

A Prayerful Reflection

Do not let your hearts be troubled. John 14:1

Do you remember the situation in which Jesus urged

his disciples to not let their hearts be troubled?

It was shortly before the worst experience of their lives:

witnessing the Passion and death of their beloved leader and friend.

This same message is offered to us in our times of trial

and tribulation. This does not mean that feelings of anxiety

and dread will cease to arise in us if we have faith in Jesus' words.

Rather, when we take his message to heart, we do not let

these feelings get the best of us. We keep turning toward

our Friend with confidence, trusting that we will have strength

to endure and make it through the rocky terrain of our troubles.

Dear Friend of my Heart, when I am troubled,

draw me to you. Remind me that you are near.

Sr. Joyce Rupp, O.S.M.

Psalm 12

Come to our aid, O Beloved!

Darkness seems to pervade the earth;

Where is the faith, the integrity

that once lived in the hearts of your people?

Where is the truth, the trust

that made its hope in us?

O Love, cleanse us from our double talk,

Create in us new and single hearts,

Spare us from those who think,

"Our speeches will win over all.

Words are our weapons;

No one can master us!"

"For the hearts of those who call to Me,

For those who cry out with wholeness,

I shall now make myself known,"

says the Beloved;

"I shall make myself known in their hearts."

The promises of love are pure,

like silver refined in a crucible,

like gold purified seven times.

Be our safeguard, O Blessed One,

Stay close by throughout these dark days

where unloving hearts seem to abound.

Come to our aid, O Beloved!

From Psalms For Praying by Nan C. Merrill

Psalm 23

O my Beloved, you are my shepherd,

I shall not want;

You bring me to green pastures for rest

and lead me beside still waters

renewing my spirit,

You restore my soul.

You lead me in the path of goodness

to follow Love's way.

Even though I walk through the

valley of the shadow and of death,

I am not afraid;

For you are ever with me

your rod and your staff they guide me,

they give me strength and comfort.

You prepare a table before me

in the presence of all my fears;

you bless me with oil,

my cup overflows.

Surely goodness and mercy will follow me

all the days of my life;

and I shall dwell in the heart

of the Beloved forever.

Taken from Psalms for Praying by Nan C. Merrill

Psalm for a Stalled Heart

My heart is cold today, O God.

I feel no burning desire,

no zeal to pray or be with you.

My heart is frozen by the chill of emptiness -

sluggish and stalled.

Send forth your Spirit

to revive my heart.

Spark it with a relish for service,

with a longing to pray.

Take me beyond the need to feel

the reassurance of a lover's heart.

May I seek to love and serve you,

even when my wintry heart

declines to dance

with springtime grace.

Remind me with the ageless truth

that we become what we pretend to be.

And as this long day passes,

may I begin to glimpse a glowing warmth

beyond my words and deeds,

the marriage of what I would be

and what I am.

And may my desire

to be your flame of warmth and love

spark other stalled souls

to come alive, aflame in you.

May this be so, O God, may this be so.

From "Prayers For A Planetary Pilgrim" by Edward Hays

Teach us to be for our children …

Teach us to listen and not be afraid; to trust in God's promise.

Teach us to love courageously with a heart that is true and just.

Teach us to protect one another, and all that belongs to God.

Teach us to dream a world where all are neighbors, a vision illumined by God's Light.

Teach us to keep the Word of God close to our hearts, to proclaim it in word and action.

Teach us to be gentle with our power and strong in our tenderness.

Teach us to be for our children, a living lesson of goodness and truth; a blessing of hope for all generations to come.

From: Ministry of the Arts | Congregation of St. Joseph