As Moses needed Aaron as his mouthpiece, perhaps I am in need of a mouthpiece, perhaps of several mouthpieces. In my previous post, Archbishop Ndungane was my mouthpiece. In this post, I choose Thomas Merton.
The Living Spirit
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 that 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 that 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 to be lost and in the shadow of death.
I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and will never leave me to face my perils alone.
Mimi, thank you. I've returned to the faith after a long absence, and most of the time feel like I'm groping in the dark. Kind souls like you and Robert and Mad Priest are my beacons.
ReplyDeleteWonderful, Mimi! I love that prayer... it's one of the oddments - along with St Isaac's "What is a merciful heart?" - that I have stuck in the front of my TSSF Manual ;-)
ReplyDeleteMimi, in my previous life that's the prayer I used as part of training discernment groups in this diocese.
ReplyDeleteGeor3ge, a beacon? You are so kind. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteI believe that we all have our groping-in-the-dark moments, and that's why I find Merton's prayer so comforting.
I'm so pleased that you have returned to the faith. I've had my moments when I was simply going through the motions when I attended church, mostly for the sake of my children.
Mike, I love it, too. I have the prayer taped onto the inside cover of my Bible. I'm going to look up St. Isaac's.
Ormonde, that's a wonderful prayer for use in training discernment groups. I'm sorry you were not doing the training for our discernment committee several years ago. I guess you had already moved on by then.
Amen, Grandmère. I believe that is the right prayer for a great many of us at this moment.
ReplyDeleteMags
Tag! Merton's great; your own voice is, too.
ReplyDeleteFor me, that prayer is right up there with the Serenity Prayer.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Mimi.
Merton and Ngundane are both fortunate to have you as a mouthpiece, Grandmère.
ReplyDeleteI am greatly blessed to be a part of such a circle, Mimi; thank God and thank you: oh yeah, all y'all, too.
ReplyDeleteThanks for posting that prayer, Grandmère Mimi. It's heartening to know that others (including Merton!) have felt like that sometimes.
ReplyDeleteThanks, all of you. Y'all make it easy. I have the best commenters in the blogscape.
ReplyDeleteI'm pleased that the prayer resonated. Maybe I'll cease original writing and just quote Thomas Merton - and Kathleen Norris, and others come to mind, many others.
Sometimes the only thing we CAN do is place all that we are, all that we face, all that will be in the hands of the Divine. I have loved Merton's prayer and pulled it out more than once in my life time. Thanks for putting it out there one more time
ReplyDeleteJust try not to quote Don Miller. 25 pages through Blue Like Jazz I wanted to slap the self-absorbed little nit silly.
ReplyDeleteGeor3ge, I had to Google that one. I went to Amazon and read several pages. I think I'm too old for it. Maybe he speaks to younger folks and awakens a few to the perils of fundamentalism. If he does, then that's good. I don't think I'm likely to be quoting him.
ReplyDeleteDid you find the St Isaac bit, Mimi? If not, here 'tis:
ReplyDelete'An elder was once asked, “What is a merciful heart?” He replied:
“It is a heart on fire for the whole of creation, for humanity, for the birds, for the animals, for demons, and for all that exists. By the recollection of them the eyes of a merciful person pour forth tears in abundance. By the strong and vehement mercy that grips such a person’s heart, and by such great compassion, the heart is humbled and one cannot bear to hear or to see any injury or slight sorrow in any in creation.
For this reason, such a person offers up tearful prayer continually even for irrational beasts, for the enemies of the truth, and for those who harm her or him, that they be protected and receive mercy. And in like manner such a person prays for the family of reptiles because of the great compassion that burns with without measure in a heart that is in the likeness of God.”'
St. Isaac of Nineveh (7th century)
Mike, I haven't had time to look it up. Thanks so much for this. It's going into my favorite prayer file along with St. Francis and Merton and a few others.
ReplyDeleteMimi, I have loved that prayer since the 1970s -- thanks for bringing it to us again.
ReplyDeleteMike, thanks so much for the Isaac of Nineveh quote.
Peace, all.