My Lord God,

            I have no idea where I am going.
           I do not see the road ahead of me
            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 the desire to please you
            Does in fact please you.
            And I hope I never do anything apart from that desire.
            And I know that if I do this,

            You will lead me to the right road
            Though I may know nothing about it.
            Therefore I will 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 you will never leave me to face my struggles alone. Amen

Thomas Merton

Desiderata 

Go placidly amid the noise and haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.
As far as possible without surrender
be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly;
and listen to others,
even the dull and the ignorant;
they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons,
they are vexations to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others,
you may become vain and bitter;
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.

Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.
Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs;
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals;
and everywhere life is full of heroism. 

Be yourself.
Especially, do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love;
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment
it is as perennial as the grass.
Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
Beyond a wholesome discipline,
be gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the universe,
No less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be,
and whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul.
With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful.
Strive to be happy.


Max Ehrmann, Desiderata, Copyright 1952

Beannacht (Irish Blessing)

On the day when
the weight deadens
on your shoulders
and you stumble,
may the clay dance
to balance you.
And when your eyes
freeze behind
the grey window
and the ghost of loss
gets in to you,
may a flock of colours,
indigo, red, green,
and azure blue
come to awaken in you
a meadow of delight.
When the canvas frays
in the currach of thought
and a stain of ocean
blackens beneath you,
may there come across the waters
a path of yellow moonlight
to bring you safely home.

May the nourishment of the earth be yours,
may the clarity of light be yours,
may the fluency of the ocean be yours,
may the protection of the ancestors be yours.
And so may a slow
wind work these words
of love around you,
an invisible cloak
to mind your life.

Beannacht

John O'Donohue

I HAVE SEEN THE LORD          

Where the mist rises from the sea
Where the waves creep upon the shore
Where the wrack lifts upon the strand,
                         I have seen the Lord

Where the sun awakens the day
Where the road winds on its way
Where the fields are sweet with hay,
                           I have seen the Lord

Where the stars shine in the sky
Where the streets so peaceful lie
Where the darkness is so nigh,
                            I have seen the Lord

The Lord is here,
The lord is there,
The lord is everywhere,
The lord is high,
The lord is low,
The lord is on the path I go

            from David Adam's book "Borderlands"

Let nothing disturb thee,

Nothing afright thee;

All things are passing;

God never changeth;

Patient endurance

Attaineth to all things;

Who God possesseth

In nothing is wanting,

Alone God sufficeth.

 

St Teresa of Avila

When the song of the angels is stilled,
When the star in the sky is gone,
When the kings and princes are home,
When the shepherds are back with their flock,
The work of Christmas begins:
To find the lost,
To heal the broken,
To feed the hungry,
To release the prisoner,
To rebuild the nations,
To bring peace among people,
To make music in the heart.

Howard Thurman

We Remember Them
 

In the rising of the sun and its going down,
We Remember Them.
In the bowing of the wind and in the chill of winter,
We Remember Them.
In the opening of the buds and in the rebirth of spring.
We Remember Them.
In the blueness of the skies and in the warmth of summer,
We Remember Them.
In the rustling of the leaves and in the beauty of autumn.
We Remember Them.
In the beginning of the year and when it ends,
We Remember Them.
When we are weary and in need of strength,
We Remember Them.
When we are lost and sick of heart,
We Remember Them.
When we have joys and special celebrations we yearn to share,
We Remember Them.
Sp long as we live, they too shall live, for they are part of us.
We Remember Them.

~From the Jewish Book Of Prayer~

The Soul’s Life

In every mystical tradition there is a certainty that we and the divine are one at the core of our being, in what we might call the soul. This soul is the prisoner of habits, desires, discursive thought and all the demanding excitements of life and it is only by connecting with it through prayer, contemplation, adoration, service of others, that we come slowly to free it and live in its supreme and healing mystery, to taste its immortality and to hear its child-like laughter.

Andrew Harvey, The Mystic Union

O Lord, mercifully receive the prayers of your servant who calls upon you, and grant that I may know and understand what things I ought to do, and that I also may have the grace and power faithfully to accomplish them; through Jesus Christ our Lord who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen

From The Divine Hours: A Manual for Prayer, compiled by Phyllis Tickle