Saturday, January 31, 2004
To Our Lady of Consolation
O Blessed Mother,
Oh how you know so well
what it is like
to be a grieving mother,
one who must watch her child suffering,
who knows what it is like
to see a child so very much in pain,
and not being able to help
or fix,
or soothe away
the cause.
O Lady of Consolation
thank you for your help and interecession
when the darkness touches our children.
Be with all of us
who have
children in pain,
in pain of the mind,
soul,
or body,
and with all of us who have lost our
children.
O Mother of Sorrows,
keep us always
under your mantle.
Amen.
Susan E. Stone, 2004
O Blessed Mother,
Oh how you know so well
what it is like
to be a grieving mother,
one who must watch her child suffering,
who knows what it is like
to see a child so very much in pain,
and not being able to help
or fix,
or soothe away
the cause.
O Lady of Consolation
thank you for your help and interecession
when the darkness touches our children.
Be with all of us
who have
children in pain,
in pain of the mind,
soul,
or body,
and with all of us who have lost our
children.
O Mother of Sorrows,
keep us always
under your mantle.
Amen.
Susan E. Stone, 2004
Friday, January 30, 2004
In the Hands of the Lord
Your hands, O Lord,
are not the smooth hands of an aristocrat,
who has never known labor
but the calloused hands of a worker,
who knows the art
of building
worlds,
lives,
hearts.
In your hands, O Lord,
may our lives find refuge.
Your hands, O Lord,
know the art of blessing,
of sharing the water of life
where all was once desert,
of bringing growth
to the desert
of lives touched with sin,
of bringing light
where all was dark.
In your hands, O Lord,
may our lives find refuge.
Your hands, O Lord,
know the art of breaking bread,
feeding the hungry
in the midst of the wilderness,
of feeding our aching souls
with the living bread which is yourself,
manna
that will transform our emptiness
like no other food possible.
In your hands, O Lord,
may our lives find refuge.
Your hands, O Lord,
know the art of love,
scarred with the sacrifice
of your own self
for our sakes,
scarred with the passion
of love like no other,
freely given
in tears and sorrow
to wipe away all sorrow,
to bring us home.
In your hands, O Lord,
may our lives find refuge,
now and forever.
Amen.
Susan E Stone, 2004
Your hands, O Lord,
are not the smooth hands of an aristocrat,
who has never known labor
but the calloused hands of a worker,
who knows the art
of building
worlds,
lives,
hearts.
In your hands, O Lord,
may our lives find refuge.
Your hands, O Lord,
know the art of blessing,
of sharing the water of life
where all was once desert,
of bringing growth
to the desert
of lives touched with sin,
of bringing light
where all was dark.
In your hands, O Lord,
may our lives find refuge.
Your hands, O Lord,
know the art of breaking bread,
feeding the hungry
in the midst of the wilderness,
of feeding our aching souls
with the living bread which is yourself,
manna
that will transform our emptiness
like no other food possible.
In your hands, O Lord,
may our lives find refuge.
Your hands, O Lord,
know the art of love,
scarred with the sacrifice
of your own self
for our sakes,
scarred with the passion
of love like no other,
freely given
in tears and sorrow
to wipe away all sorrow,
to bring us home.
In your hands, O Lord,
may our lives find refuge,
now and forever.
Amen.
Susan E Stone, 2004
Thoughts On Our Lady on the First Holy Saturday
O Sorrowful Mother,
How dark that day must have been,
When the light that was your son,
the light of heaven
who had been your life
who had been your light
lay
seemingly extinguished
in the cold, cold tomb.
O Mother of Sorrows,
did the little band of followers
come together that sabbath,
shocked,
exhausted,
frightened
in that numbing twilight of fresh grief?
How dark it must have seemed
without his light,
his soft voice,
his touch.
How much he had asked you to give,
your heart,
your body,
your love.
Thank you for saying yes.
Susan E. Stone, 2004
O Sorrowful Mother,
How dark that day must have been,
When the light that was your son,
the light of heaven
who had been your life
who had been your light
lay
seemingly extinguished
in the cold, cold tomb.
O Mother of Sorrows,
did the little band of followers
come together that sabbath,
shocked,
exhausted,
frightened
in that numbing twilight of fresh grief?
How dark it must have seemed
without his light,
his soft voice,
his touch.
How much he had asked you to give,
your heart,
your body,
your love.
Thank you for saying yes.
Susan E. Stone, 2004
Labels: Passion of Christ
Prayer for the Depressed
Dear Lord,
This day be with those
who live with aching loneliness
which sees to have no solution,
who in rejection
find only emptiness
and no hope.
Be with them Lord,
in the darkness of their lives,
You who are all love
lead them back to the light
and heal the troubles,
leading them all
to those who will bring them strength.
Teach us Lord,
to be aware
when our brother suffers,
and to do nothing
that adds unnecessarily to another's load,
and to be thankful always
for the light of your love,
for the healing you offer
and the joy that you bring.
Amen.
Susan E. Stone, 2004
Dear Lord,
This day be with those
who live with aching loneliness
which sees to have no solution,
who in rejection
find only emptiness
and no hope.
Be with them Lord,
in the darkness of their lives,
You who are all love
lead them back to the light
and heal the troubles,
leading them all
to those who will bring them strength.
Teach us Lord,
to be aware
when our brother suffers,
and to do nothing
that adds unnecessarily to another's load,
and to be thankful always
for the light of your love,
for the healing you offer
and the joy that you bring.
Amen.
Susan E. Stone, 2004
Tuesday, January 27, 2004
Thank you, Lord, for Our Vunerabilities
Thank you, Lord,
for our vunerabilities,
all those failings
which make us realize
how frail we are,
how likely to fall,
how imperfect.
When we give in
to our anger,
our pride,
our feelings of overconfidence,
and fall,
teach us, Lord,
how much we need you,
how much we depend on you,
how much less perfect
than you,
and in teaching us the truth and power of humility,
let us discover how you
want to hold our hand
each and every step.
In my lack of perfection, Lord,
instead of grief and anger and only shame,
let me always find
completion
in the love and care you offer.
Susan E. Stone, 2004
Thank you, Lord,
for our vunerabilities,
all those failings
which make us realize
how frail we are,
how likely to fall,
how imperfect.
When we give in
to our anger,
our pride,
our feelings of overconfidence,
and fall,
teach us, Lord,
how much we need you,
how much we depend on you,
how much less perfect
than you,
and in teaching us the truth and power of humility,
let us discover how you
want to hold our hand
each and every step.
In my lack of perfection, Lord,
instead of grief and anger and only shame,
let me always find
completion
in the love and care you offer.
Susan E. Stone, 2004
Labels: Discipleship
Monday, January 26, 2004
Prayer on a sick day
O Lord,
Today my sickbed calls me,
and as I lay and rest
in my warm bed,
let me remember
the others,
those suffering without shelter,
those hungry and cold,
those watching
with no way to stop it,
their loved ones
slip away into death,
mothers with sick children,
those with lost husbands,
wives,
friends,
those who witness
tragedy and death.
How the world suffers,
day after day.
And most of all,
let me remember
you
exposed on the cross,
stripped of all comforts
bleeding,
wounded
cold,
in pain,
not for anything you did,
but for us in our miseries,
and sin
and sorrows.
Lord, I offer you my small pain,
my fear,
the suffering,
and say,
thank you
for joining us in our pain,
sanctifying our suffering,
and allowing us to offer it back to you,
for reparation,
for conversion,
to renew the face of the world.
Amen.
Susan E. Stone, 2004
O Lord,
Today my sickbed calls me,
and as I lay and rest
in my warm bed,
let me remember
the others,
those suffering without shelter,
those hungry and cold,
those watching
with no way to stop it,
their loved ones
slip away into death,
mothers with sick children,
those with lost husbands,
wives,
friends,
those who witness
tragedy and death.
How the world suffers,
day after day.
And most of all,
let me remember
you
exposed on the cross,
stripped of all comforts
bleeding,
wounded
cold,
in pain,
not for anything you did,
but for us in our miseries,
and sin
and sorrows.
Lord, I offer you my small pain,
my fear,
the suffering,
and say,
thank you
for joining us in our pain,
sanctifying our suffering,
and allowing us to offer it back to you,
for reparation,
for conversion,
to renew the face of the world.
Amen.
Susan E. Stone, 2004
Labels: Suffering
