A LAMP TO MY FEET. A LIGHT FOR MY PATH.

.

TODAY’S WORD…

.

“What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked the blind man.

“Teacher,” he answered, “I want to see again!”

“Go,” Jesus told him, “your faith has made you well.”

At once he was able to see and followed Jesus on the road.

.

– Mark 10:51-52 (GNT)

.

.

.

REFLECTION…

.

How many times do we lose sight of Christ,

because our selfishness draws us in other directions?

How many times do we find ourselves enveloped in darkness

with a yearning to go back into the light?

.

It is our faith

and God’s grace

that spurs us to look in the direction of Jesus

and to cry out to Him “I want to see again!

Forgive me, Lord, I want to see again!”

.

Our Lord recognises a contrite heart,

He listens to the cry of the faithful

and He is quick to respond

“Go, your faith has made you well.”

.

He again fills us with His glorious light

and sets us back on the right path,

more determined than ever not to lose sight of Him again.

.

.

.

REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

.

Lord Jesus, You are the Light of the World!

.

TODAY’S WORD…

.

For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:

.

a time to be born, and a time to die;

a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;

a time to break down, and a time to build up;

a time to weep, and a time to laugh;

a time to mourn, and a time to dance;

a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;

a time to seek, and a time to lose;

a time to keep, and a time to cast away;

a time to tear, and a time to sew;

a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;

.

God has made everything beautiful in its time.

.

– Ecclesiastes 3:1-7,11 (ESV)

.

.

.

QUOTE…

.

“Act as if every day were the last of your life,

and each action the last you perform.”

.

– St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori

.

.

.

REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

.

Lord, let me use my time for You.

May all that I do be done in Your name and be pleasing to You.

.

.

TODAY’S WORD…

.

Rejoice in the Lord always.

I will say it again: Rejoice!

Let your gentleness be evident to all.

The Lord is near.

.

Do not be anxious about anything,

but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving,

present your requests to God.

And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding,

will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

.

– Philippians 4:4-7 (NIV)

.

.

.

REFLECTION…

.

Because of the nearness of our Lord,

we the faithful – even if we are living in difficult conditions –

can still have joy in our hearts

This kind of joy in adversity

can only come from placing our hope in Jesus Christ

and knowingly and faithfully trusting in Him

.

The Lord is, in fact, always near us,

always caring for us in His providence.

Therefore, there is no reason for us to feel ill at ease.

He is our Saviour,

He is near to all who call on Him,

He listens to our prayers,

ever ready to instruct us

and to give us whatever we need to overcome difficulties that arise.

.

All that God asks is that we trustingly share our situation with Him,

speaking to Him with the simplicity of a child

– not that He doesn’t already know what’s troubling us,

but He really wants to hear it from us.

.

Constant dialogue with God in prayer and petition

is a good way to prevent anything or anyone

from robbing us of peace of soul.

.

.

.

QUOTE…

.

"This is the difference between us and those who do not know God

– they complain in adversity,

but difficulties do not draw us away from virtue or from the true faith.

On the contrary, our virtue and faith are reinforced in affliction"

.

– St. Cyprian

.

.

"For a Christian, joy is a treasure.

Only by offending God do we lose it,

because sin is the fruit of selfishness,

and selfishness is the root of sadness.

Even then, a bit of joy survives under the debris of our soul

– the knowledge that neither God, nor Christ’s Mother, forgets us."

.

– St. Josemaria Escriva

.

.

.

REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

.

My Lord and my God, I trust in You!

.

.

TODAY’S WORD…

.

Jesus said,

“I have come to bring fire to the earth,

and how I wish it were blazing already!”

.

– Luke 12:49(JB)

.

.

.

REFLECTION…

.

In the Bible,

fire is often used

to describe God’s burning love for men.

..

This divine love

finds its highest expression

in the Son of God becoming man

who, in turn, gives up His life out of love for us.

..

This is why Jesus so wants us to be ablaze

with a fire that acquires its strength in prayer;

a fire that is made evident

through apostolic zeal

and determination.

..

This same fire spreads throughout the earth

as we ourselves live in accordance to Christ’s teachings

and take Christ’s burning flame of love and hope and joy

to others.

.

.

.

REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

.

Come Lord Jesus, set my heart on fire!

.

.

TODAY’S WORD…

.

I love You, Lord;
You are my strength.
The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my saviour;
my God is my rock, in whom I find protection.
He is my shield, the power that saves me,
and my place of safety.

.

– Psalm 18:1-2 (NLT)

.

.

.

QUOTE…

.

"O my God,

who first gave me the help of Your call so that I could trust in You!

My protector, the guarantor of my well-being, and my redeemer;

You are my protector because I did not rely on my own resources,

did not raise the weapon of pride against You.

.

You Yourself became my weapon:

I found the sure strength of salvation,

in such a way that as soon as You made it known to me

You redeemed me.”

.

– St. Augustine

.

.

.

REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

.

Lord, You are the power that saves me, and my place of safety.

Protect me, Lord.

I need You, Lord.

.

.

TODAY’S WORD…

.

Be calm and vigilant,

because your enemy the devil

is prowling round like a roaring lion,

looking for someone to eat.

Stand up to him, strong in faith.

.

– 1 Peter 5:8-9 (NIV)

.

.

.

REFLECTION…

.

We are urged

to always be sober and clear-headed

so as to be on guard against the evil one.

.

There is always need to be watchful

against the assaults of the devil

– the liar, the detractor –

who will pounce on us

if we lower our guard

especially when we are focusing on ourselves.

.

.

.

QUOTE…

.

"He (the devil) moves round each one of us,

like an enemy who has us surrounded

and is checking the walls

to see if there is some weak, unsecured part,

where he can get in."

.

– St. Cyprian

.

.

.

REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

.

Give me strength, O Lord, in my weakness

and sustain me in my sufferings.

.

.

TODAY’S WORD…

.

Let my words come to Your ears, O Lord:

hear my sighs.

Listen to the voice of my crying,

my King and my God.

.

– Psalm 5:1-2 (JB)

.

.

.

REFLECTION…

.

God hears our prayers

and knows when they are coming from the heart.

.

We believe that He is King,

that He is Lord, and God.

He is King of Kings,

Lord of Lords, and God of gods.

.

By faith, we put ourselves

under His guidance and care,

fully confident

of His great love, mercy and grace.

.

.

.

PRAYER…

.

My Lord, my God, my King,

I beg You – please hear my prayer.

.

My Lord, my God, my King,

– heal me, guide me and protect me.

.

My Lord, my God, my King,

to whom shall I plead

if not to You?

For You are the Almighty

and You have my name

written on the palm of Your hand.

.

Please hear my prayer, Lord.

.

.

.

REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

.

My Lord, my God, my King,

I beg You – please hear my prayer.

.

.

TODAY’S WORD…

.

May these words of my mouth

and this meditation of my heart

be pleasing in Your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.

.

– Psalm 19:14 (NIV)

.

.

.

REFLECTION…

.

When I go before the Lord,

am I fully conscious of who I am addressing?

.

Why do I go before Him?

Habit?

Tradition?

Need?

Love?

Contrition?

.

Do I go before Him

to give,

or to take?

.

Do I seek to please the Lord with my words and thoughts?

Are my prayers automatic and without any real intention,

or are they genuine and meaningful?

.

It will help us focus our mind on the Lord

and also be more conscious of His presence

if we were to start our prayers

by worshipfully bowing our head, and reciting this verse:

May these words of my mouth

and this meditation of my heart

be pleasing in Your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.

It will also be pleasing to the Lord,

to end our prayers with the same verse.

.

.

.

REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

.

May these words of my mouth

and this meditation of my heart

be pleasing in Your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.

.

.

TODAY’S WORD…

.

Hasten, O God, to save me;
come quickly, Lord, to help me.

.

– Psalm 70:1 (NIV)

.

.

.

REFLECTION…

.

Hasten, O God, to save me;
come quickly, Lord, to help me.

What are you asking for today?

Never be afraid to express yourself and your sorrow to the Lord.

.

Hasten, O God, to save me;
come quickly, Lord, to help me.

Do not be afraid to express your heart before the Lord,

even your sorrow.

You may even burst out in tears,

in which case remember

that “whoever has shed tears before God is blessed.” (Watchman Nee)

.

.

.

QUOTE…

.

“The help we invoke is already the first step of God’s mercy to us.

He comes to save us from the condition of weakness in which we live.

And His help consists in making us grasp His presence and His closeness.

Touched by His compassion,

day by day we can also become compassionate to all.”

.

– Pope Francis

.

.

.

REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

.

Hasten, O God, to save me;

come quickly, Lord, to help me.

.

.

TODAY’S WORD…

.

His commandments are these:

that we believe

in the name of His Son Jesus Christ

and that we love one another

as He told us to.

.

Whoever keeps His commandments

lives in God

and God lives in Him.

We know that He lives in us

by the Spirit that He has given us.

.

– 1 John 3:23-24 (JB)

.

.

.

REFLECTION…

.

Here we have the commandments of God

summed up in terms of love for Jesus

and love for one another.

.

Faith and love cannot be separated;

and our Lord Himself told us what would mark His disciples out:

our love for one another.

.

Keeping the commandments

confirms to the Christian

that he or she is abiding in God.

Jesus tells us,

"If you keep my commandments,

you will abide in my love." (Jn 15:10)

.

Keeping the commandments

ensures that God abides in my soul

by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus tells me,

"If you love me

you will keep my commandments.

And I will pray to the Father,

and He will give you another Counsellor,

to be with you for ever." (Jn 14:15-16).

.

.

.

REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

.

Break my chains, Lord, come live in me.

I want to live in Your love!

.