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Lord's Prayer

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever and ever.

Prayer of St. Denis

You are wisdom, uncreated and eternal,
the supreme first cause, above all being,
sovereign Godhead, sovereign goodness,
watching unseen the God-inspired wisdom of Christian people.

Raise us, I pray, that we may totally respond
to the supreme, unknown, ultimate, and splendid height
of your words, mysterious and inspired.

There all God's secret matters lie covered and hidden
under darkness both profound and brilliant, silent and wise.

You make what is ultimate and beyond brightness
secretly to shine in all that is most dark.

In your way, ever unseen and intangible
you fill to the full with the most beautiful splendor
those souls who close their eyes that they may see.

And I, please, with love that goes on beyond mind
to all that is beyond mind,
seek to gain such for myself through this prayer.

from The Cloud of Unknowing by St. Denis, 14th century

Prayer for Unity Among Christians

O  God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, our only Saviour, the Prince of Peace; Give us grace to take to heart the great dangers we are in by our unhappy divisions. Take away all hatred and prejudice, and whatever else may hinder us from godly union and concord: that as there is but one Body and one Spirit, and one hope of our calling, one Lord, one Faith, one Baptism, one God and Father of us all, so we may be all of one heart and of one soul, united in one holy bond of truth and peace, of faith and charity, and may with one mind and one mouth glorify you; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

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Meditation

[One hope of our calling among all Christians.]

Benediction

Lord, support me all the day long of this troublous life, until the shadows lengthen and the evening comes, and the busy world is hushed, and the fever of life is over and my work is done. Then of Thy mercy, grant me a safe lodging, and a holy rest and a peace at last through Jesus Christ, our Lord.

Think of the day ahead in terms of God with you, and visualize health, strength, guidance, purity, calm confidence, and victory as the gifts of His presence.

How to Hear God

1 Corinthians 15:50-58 (ESV)

Victory

I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet.

For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed.

For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:

The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.

Notes on the Scripture

So much of Paul's writing is difficult to follow, and his style so often mundane and prosaic, that it is startling when he suddenly shifts gears and, in a fit of inspiration, explodes into world-class poetic essay. This passage caps the long section on what form we might take after death, and the peoples' fear of change. Here he gives us, not consolation, but rather a startling leap. Do not be concerned with the death and decay of your body, he might have said, because your body cannot inherit the Kingdom of God.

Look at the benefit instead of dwelling in your insecurities. The might and power of God are going to transform you into something incorruptible, someone who will be able to inherit His Kingdom for eternity.

“The sting of death is sin,” he reminds us. Our bodies decay and, ultimately, return to the dust from which they sprang. No longer the house for our soul, they are not needed. They are an old crib that has been outgrown, a skin that a snake has shed or a cocoon from which a butterfly has emerged. The discarding of an unneeded old husk is not a cause for mourning or fear, for the occasion is not an end, but a moment of emergence.

Our fear is not this death of the body, but sin, which will end the lives of our souls. By the merits of Christ, we assure that we will rise untarnished into a form that is incorruptible, beyond the reach of disease or Satan himself.

The Resurrection of Christ by Noel Coypel c. 1700.

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