These verses came to me earlier this week when I was praying without words. I wanted so much to ignore them and keep on drawing nearer to God, but they were so insistent that I had to open my eyes and write down what I was being given:
Today you will be with me in paradise (Luke 23:43; NLT).
Father, While my mind is still,
Please let me rise
To you, in heaven.
Jesus,
While my eyes are closed,
Please let me see
Your shining face.
Spirit,
While my heart is hushed,
Please let me hear
Your wordless sighing.
Threefold God, Though I am dust,
Please let me share
Your peace and grace.
May God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior give you grace and peace (Titus 1:4; NLT).
References
His face shone like the sun (Matthew 17:2; NLT).
The Spirit himself intercedes for us with sighs too deep for words (Romans 8:26; RSV).
I have ventured to speak to the Lord, although I am only dust and ashes (Genesis 18:27; NASB20).
O God, you are my God; I earnestly search for you. My soul thirsts for you; my whole body longs for you in this parched and weary land where there is no water (Psalm 63:1; NLT).
And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9; KJV).
The Rosary Hospital
Yesterday I enjoyed improving two of my own rosaries, which have been awaiting my attention for the last few weeks. I feel much happier about them now.
Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth” (Luke 10:21; NET).
I praise you, Lord of heaven and earth,
For you renew my strength.
I praise you, Christ, the Counsellor,
For you have made me whole.
I praise you, Spirit, Mighty God, For you restore my life.
I praise you, Threefold Prince of Peace,
For you redeem my soul.
I will praise the Lord at all times (Psalm 34:1; NLT).
References
Unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6; KJV).
He renews my strength (Psalm 23:3; NLT).
He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that made us whole, and with his stripes we are healed (Isaiah 53:5; RSV).
His good favour restores one’s life (Psalm 30:5; NET).
The Lord redeems the soul of his servants (Psalm 34:22; NKJV).
Despite my migraine, the moment I began to pray two days ago, this little conversation came vividly to mind:
The LORD must wait for you to come to him so he can show you his love and compassion (Isaiah 30:18; NLT).
Let’s visit the garden
Where Jesus is waiting
To listen, and talk with him daily
In prayer.
Let’s live in the garden
Where Jesus is dwelling,
Communing as one with our Saviour,
God’s Heir.
But where is this garden,
The heaven we long for? It’s here, deep within you,
The temple we share.
Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? (1 Corinthians 6:19; NLT).
Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us (Colossians 3:11; NLT).
References
Be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age (Matthew 28:20; NLT).
I long for the Lord more than sentries long for the dawn (Psalm 130:6; NLT).
All who love me will do what I say. My Father will love them, and we will come and make our home with each of them (John 14:23; NLT).
She lived as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the Temple but stayed there day and night, worshiping God with fasting and prayer (Luke 2:37; NLT).
Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your Kingdom.” And Jesus replied, “I assure you, today you will be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:42-3; NLT).
The Rosary Hospital
While I was ill in bed earlier this week, I received an exciting packet of broken rosaries, which turned out to be full of treasures.
As an example, here is a centrepiece I might easily have discarded, because at first glance, it was so clouded and obscure that the picture of Our Lady was barely visible. It looked sticky, as if the resin might have begun to de-nature far beyond restoration. However, after a gentle wash and dry, this is the result – a sparkling centrepiece in mint condition, ready for a whole new life as part of a rosary yet to be made.
After a day of quiet pottering about at home, this is the prayer I chose for today’s blog:
The Lord – who is the Spirit – makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image (2 Corinthians 3:18; NLT).
May I grow more and more
Like you
In all I feel, think,
Say, and do,
Until we live as one
In love,
On earth, Lord, Then in heaven above.
We will be with the Lord forever (1 Thessalonians 4:17; NLT).
The Rosary Hospital
Here is the rosary I started yesterday, with the precious, old cross. It’s now finished and wrapped, ready for hand-delivery. I daren’t entrust it to the postal system, just in case it got lost.
Today’s little couplets began to arrive yesterday morning, when I kissed my icon of Jesus. To my surprise, everything I receive is still about prayer, so I’m just going with the flow.
Jesus took Peter, John, and James up on a mountain to pray (Luke 9:28; NLT).
Help me to pray with you, Jesus,
All day and all night.
Help me to pray in your Spirit,
And walk in your light.
Help me to pray to our Father,
In heaven above.
Help me to join you in Oneness,
And live in your love.
Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them (1 John 4:16; NIV).
References
They will pray day and night, continually (Isaiah 62:6; NLT).
Pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests (Ephesians 6:18; NIV).
Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, “I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life” (John 8:12; NLT).
Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy (Matthew 6:9; NLT).
Then God said, “Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us” (Genesis 1:26; NLT).
The LORD our God, the LORD is one (Deuteronomy 6:4;NIV).
Whoever is united with the Lord is one with him in spirit (1 Corinthians 6:17; NIV).
The Rosary Hospital
Yesterday I made a simple, experimental prayer circlet to wear around my neck, and to hold. It’s loose enough to be able to move from one bead to the next using only one hand. After trying it out, I plan to re-make it with a moveable cross at intervals, as I think that will be helpful when I’m praying.
I find that interceding for others can easily become a burden. More and more people are added to my list, and hardly anyone is ever crossed off. Praying for them all can become a lengthy, repetitive, exhausting task, rather than a caring, heartfelt appeal for God to help them. Sometimes I’m just not well enough to manage it at all, even though I don’t want to neglect anyone who is suffering.
As I was reflecting on this a couple of days ago, today’s prayer came to me:
I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them (1 Timothy 2:1; NLT).
It doesn’t need to be a burden:
Pray, right now, for everyone,
Asking God to heal and bless them:
Simply pray through Christ, the Son.
Let the Holy Spirit pray On your behalf, to God above.
Lift this troubled world to heaven:
He will help us all, with love.
The Spirit [comes to us and] helps us in our weakness. We do not know what prayer to offer or how to offer it as we should, but the Spirit Himself [knows our need and at the right time] intercedes on our behalf with sighs and groanings too deep for words (Romans 8:26; AMP).
After writing, then saying, this prayer, I suddenly saw that I could use my rosary to help me pray for others. So I tried it out, like this:
Holding the first bead of the first decade, I waited silently to see who came into my mind, then I prayed for them. Moving on to the next bead, I waited again to see who came to mind, and so on. When no more names appeared, I knew my intercessions were finished for the moment.
With this approach, I didn’t have to think about who to pray for, which was a relief. It also felt less mechanical than using a list – more natural, spontaneous, and supported by the Holy Spirit.
I quickly saw that I could use my rosary like this to pray discreetly for others in different settings, such as during medical treatments, or journeys, whilst walking, or waiting somewhere, and so on. Normally, I do this without a rosary, but find that it’s very easy to be distracted, to forget who I’m praying for, or even to forget that I’m praying. The more creative I can be with my intercessions, the fresher and more alive they will become. I already know that there will be more on this topic over the next few days. God is good!
References
Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion (Ephesians 6:18; NLT).
You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that the Son can bring glory to the Father (John 14L13; NLT).
I am the LORD who heals you (Exodus 15:26; NLT).
I am the one who wounds and heals (Deuteronomy 32:39; NLT).
As soon as I started to pray last Monday, fresh prayers began to arrive. It was all I could do to keep up with them, and at one point, to my horror, I thought I had accidentally erased a whole piece. Fortunately, I managed to find it in the end. Here is one of the prayers I received that day:
Whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord (Romans 14:8; NLT).
Heaven
Is being one with God –
From genesis
Before our birth,
Through trials and sorrows
Here on earth;
In loss and gain,
In joy and pain –
Forever one
In love.
Heaven
Is being one with God –
Let’s offer thanks,
Rejoice and pray,
And follow Jesus
Every day.
Let’s seek his face,
And share his grace –
Forever one
In God.
Heaven
Is being one with God –
Let’s praise his name
With every breath,
And walk with him
In life and death.
Then, safe ashore,
We will adore –
Forever one
With God.
We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in his love. God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them (1 John 4:16; NLT).
Context: Today’s prayer came to me a couple of days ago. It’s about how God can use our willingly-offered suffering to help others. This is a mystery I don’t really understand at all, and which I would very much like to know more about:
Through suffering, our bodies continue to share in the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies (2 Corinthians 4:10; NLT).
Lord God,
If my suffering, sorrow
And hurt,
Which I willingly accept
And embrace,
Are of any value
To you,
Please use them
To help others,
Even though I don’t know
How you do this.
And, Lord,
Please enable me
To understand and share
Your purpose.
We know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them (Romans 8:28; NLT).
References
Suffering: Since we are his children, we are his heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God’s glory. But if we are to share his glory, we must also share his suffering (Romans 8:17; NLT).
I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us (Romans 8:18; NIV).
Sorrow: He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled. Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.” Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will” (Matthew 26:37; NIV).
Hurt: I have thought deeply about all that goes on here under the sun, where people have the power to hurt each other (Ecclesiastes 8:9; NLT).
When they came to the place called the Skull, they crucified him there, along with the criminals – one on his right, the other on his left. Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing” (Luke 23:33-4; NIV).
Acceptance: Should we accept only good things from the hand of God, and never anything bad? (Job 2:10; NLT).
Let them turn the other cheek to those who strike them and accept the insults of their enemies (Lamentations 3:30; NLT).
Rosary-making news:
To my great delight, yesterday I received a box of broken rosaries, chaplets and bracelets by post. I had a very enjoyable afternoon taking them to pieces, and sorting out all the parts I can re-use. Then I made my first rosary for several days. It was a bit of a struggle joining it all up, and I had to start again, but here is a photo of the final result, made for a friend in my spiritual discernment group:
