Opening prayer
“In simple trust, in silence and in stillness, in the quiet darkness, where strivings cease, you will know me.”
Lord, I give myself into your keeping, my life into your hands. I will follow your guidance, and do as you say. May obedience become truly the same as loving you, for in obeying your word, I will find your love – experience your love and give you my love, and share your love with others – which is our calling.
May the truth of this prayer guide and sustain me through all trials and travails, through my failures and mistakes. May my trust in you never falter, even though I fail and betray you. May I ever put out my hand for you to take hold of me and lift me up. May I find joy in your presence, and peace for my soul. The truth of your abiding love is the bedrock of my life, and in joyful thanksgiving, I turn to you.
Amen
In praise of God
All praise to you, my Lord, my God.
By your great mercies, you have redeemed me.
When I was powerless – and held in the grip of terrible powers – when I was incapable of doing anything to remedy my errors and my defects, you set me free.
Not for any promises I might make of future faithfulness, but purely from your grace. For it is your nature to have mercy, and we now, and always, depend on your grace. You love us – for it is your nature to love. Still, you do not have to love us, but you do. Never failing to love us, yet, out of love for us, you respect even our sins, allowing us freedom to depart from you – though you never depart from us. Latent with love, waiting only for us to stop resisting you. So, not waiting for our response, but only graciously looking for us to stop resisting you, you pour into our souls your forgiveness.
And it is in forgiveness that we are redeemed. Pouring your goodness, truth and love into our lives, you restore our relationship with you, which alone gives us life, allows us to stand, and lift up our heads. In forgiveness, we reacquire the ability to turn to you and be healed.
And such healing is found in you as to mend all hurts – and the greatest of hurts is that we turned from you and lost all hope and peace, all soundness of body, mind, heart and soul. Yet such is your cleansing that we are completely clean. Clean as though never soiled, yet also clean in constant awareness that we were not clean, till we accepted your grace. So, we attain a wholeness greater than ever – for having been broken. Still, it would have been better never to have broken, but having broken, in your grace, it becomes a means for even greater grace. Thus, penitence and joy are held in our hearts together, praising you for finding remedy for our sins, and rejoicing in the life restored to us, open to live in union with you, dear Lord.
I will never stop praising you. In glad obedience, I commit myself to living to please you. My hope is to obey you forever, but should I fail you, I will not despair, but trust in you, and call on you to give grace and yet more grace. My restoration, my wholeness, does not rest on my promise of faithfulness to you, but on your forgiving grace. Yet, with all my heart and soul and mind and strength, I give myself to you, wanting only to know you, and to love you, and to serve you.
Through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Amen
Spiritual Devotion 