Every day, we will post a few brief prayers inspired by the Liturgy of the Hours.
O Lord, open my lips. And my mouth shall declare your praise.
Psalm 138
I thank you, Lord, with all my heart, you have heard the words of my mouth. In the presence of the angels I will bless you. I will adore before your holy temple. I thank you for your faithfulness and love which excel all we ever knew of you. On the day I called, you answered; you increased the strength of my soul. All earth’s kings shall thank you when they hear the words of your mouth. They shall sing of the Lord’s ways: “How great is the glory of the Lord!” The Lord is high yet he looks on the lowly and the haughty he knows from afar. Though I walk in the midst of affliction you give me life and frustrate my foes. You stretch out your hand and save me, your hand will do all things for me. Your love, O Lord, is eternal, discard not the work of your hands.
Reading: From a treatise on Christian Perfection by St. Gregory of Nyssa
Christ is like a pure, untainted stream. If you draw from him the thoughts in your mind and the inclinations of your heart, you will show a likeness to Christ, your source and origin, as the gleaming water in a jar resembles the flowing water from which it was obtained. For the purity of Christ and the purity that is manifest in our hearts are identical. Christ’s purity, however, is the fountainhead; ours has its source in him and flows out of him. Our life is stamped with the beauty of his thought. The inner and the outer man are harmonized in a kind of music. The mind of Christ is the controlling influence that inspires us to moderation and goodness in our behavior. As I see it, Christian perfection consists in this: sharing the titles which express the meaning of Christ’s name, we bring out this meaning in our minds, our prayers and our way of life.
The Canticle of Mary
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, My spirit rejoices in God, my Savior for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant. From this day all generations will call me blessed: the Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his Name.
Intercessions
Bring help to the poor and suffering. Hear us, O Lord! Be merciful to sinners. Hear us, O Lord! Give the dying your strength and peace. Hear us, O Lord!
Dear Father, We praise you now and ask that one day we will all praise you forever in Heaven. We ask this through Jesus, your Son, who lives with you and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
