Seven whole days

‘Come, let us return to the Lord; for it is he who has torn, and he will heal us; he has struck down, and he will bind us up. Hosea 6:1

Father, I abandon myself into your hands; do with me what you will. Whatever you may do, I thank you: I am ready for all, I accept all. Let only your will be done in me, and in all Your creatures – I wish no more than this, O Lord. Into your hands I commend my soul; I offer it to you with all the love of my heart, for I love you Lord, and so need
to give myself, to surrender myself into your hands, without reserve, and with boundless confidence, For you are my Father.

Prayer by Charles de Foucauld

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Return, O Israel, to the Lord your God, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity. Hosea 14:1

Saving God, free us from hardness of heart, take from us all pride and pretension, strip us clean of all that makes us incapable of being witnesses of your gentle love. Make us worthy agents of your peace, so that even as we contend with one another the world may say, “But see how they love one another.” Amen.

Prayer by Stanley Hauerwas

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I will sing of your steadfast love, O Lord, for ever; with my mouth I will proclaim your faithfulness to all generations. Psalm 89:1

O God, who from the family of your servant David raised up Joseph to be the guardian of your incarnate Son and the spouse of his virgin mother: Give us grace to imitate his uprightness of life and his obedience to your commands; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Prayer from the BCP, page 239

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Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. Matthew 5:17

Grant me the ability to be alone; may it be my custom to go outdoors each day among the trees and grasses, among all growing things and there may I be alone, and enter into prayer to talk with the one that I belong to.

Prayer by Rabbi Nachman of  Bratzlav

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But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such as these to worship him. John 4:23

Deliver us, O Lord, from silly devotions and sullen saints. Govern all by your wisdom so that our souls may always be serving you as you will and not as we choose. Do not punish us, Lord, by granting that which we wish or ask, if it offends your love which would always live in us. Let us die to ourselves that we may serve you. Let us live to you who in yourself are the true life. Amen.

Prayer by Teresa of  Avila

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As a deer longs for flowing streams, so my soul longs for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. Psalm 42:1-2a

I came to love you late, O Beauty, so ancient, so new. I came to love you late! Look! You were internal and I was external, running about in my ugly fashion, seeking you in the beautiful things you made. You were with me, but I was not with you. Those things kepp me far from you, even though if they were not in you, they would not be at all. You called and cried out and broke open my deafness. You gleamed and shone and chased away my blindness. I breathed your fragrance and pant for more. I tasted and now hunger and thirst. You touched me and I burn for your presence.

Prayer by Augustine of  Hippo

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For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 1 Corinthians 1:18

Take, Lord, all my liberty, my memory, my understanding, and my whole will. You have given me all that I have, all that I am, and I surrender all to Your Divine will. You have given me all that I have, all that I am, and I surrender all to Your Divine will. Give me only your love and your grace. With this I am rich enough, and I have no more to ask.
Amen.

Prayer by Ignatius of  Loyola

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Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity and passing over the transgression of the remnant of your possession? He does not retain his anger forever, because he delights in showing clemency. He will again have compassion upon us; he will tread our iniquities under foot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea. Micah 7:18-19

Almighty and most merciful God, kindle within us the fire of love, that by its cleansing flame we may be purged of all our sins and worthy to worship you in spirit and in truth; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Prayer from the BCP, page 111

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Jesus said to them, ‘Have you never read in the scriptures: “The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this was the Lord’s doing, and it is amazing in our eyes”? Matthew 21:42

Govern everything by your wisdom, O Lord, so that my soul may always be serving you in the way you will and not as I choose. Let me die to myself so that I may serve you; let me live to you who are life itself. Amen.

Prayer by Teresa of  Avila

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Happy are those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or take the path that sinners tread, or sit in the seat of scoffers; but their delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law they meditate day and night. Psalm 1:1-2

The things, good Lord, that we pray for, give us the grace to labor for.

Prayer by Thomas More

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Can I not do with you, O house of Israel, just as this potter has done? says the Lord. Just like the clay in the potter’s hand, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel. Jeremiah 18:6

O Lord, my God. Form me more fully into your likeness. Use the circumstances and interactions of this day to form your will in me. From the frustrations of this day form peace. From the joys of this day form strength. From the struggles of this day form courage. From the beauties of this day form love. In the name of Jesus Christ who
is all peace and strength and courage and love. Amen.

Prayer by Richard Foster

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…though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be like snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool. Isaiah 1:18b

O Lord, The house of my soul is narrow; enlarge it that you may enter in. It is ruinous, O repair it! It displeases Your sight. I confess it, I know. But who shall cleanse it, to whom shall I cry but to you? Cleanse me from my secret faults, O Lord, and spare Your servant from strange sins.

Prayer by Augustine of  Hippo

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