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The Prayer Attributed to St. Francis of Assisi

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Lord, make me an instrument of your peace. Where there is hatred, let me bring love. Where there is offence, let me bring pardon. Where there is discord, let me bring union. Where there is error, let me bring truth. Where there is doubt, let me bring faith. Where there is despair, let me bring hope. Where there is darkness, let me bring your light. Where there is sadness, let me bring joy.


O Lord, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console, to be understood as to understand, to be loved as to love, for it is in giving that one receives, it is in self-forgetting that one finds, it is in forgiving that one is forgiven, it is in dying that one awakens to eternal life.

Amen.

Moving Forward Meditations

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Moving Forward - 6 February 2025

    THURSDAY, February 6


    Mark 8:29 He asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, “You are the Messiah.”


    I think Peter’s answer came not only from divine revelation but also from his lived experience of Jesus. Prayer, studying and living scripture, and doing the action of discipleship make the difference between knowing of Jesus and having a real relationship with Jesus. As the old folks used to say, “There are some things nobody else can tell you about Jesus ‘cause you just got to try him for yourself.”


    I’m not advocating a “Jesus and me and my Bible makes three” spirituality. The Church is the Body of Christ, of which we are each, both simply and profoundly, a part. What I am advocating is such a depth of relationship with the Godhead, such a dependence on the Holy Spirit to fuel our lives of individual and collective prayer, that we can’t help but know Jesus for ourselves.


    MOVING FORWARD: What spiritual practices do you use to help you truly know Jesus?



    (Source: Forward Day by Day Movement)

     
     
     

    Moving Forward - 5 February 2025


      Mark 8:21 Then he said to them, “Do you not yet understand?”


      Apparently, Jesus did have his limits, and this day was one of them. On other occasions when the disciples are slow to catch on, Jesus appears to exercise divine patience. But not this time. On this day, Jesus lets his irritation show.


      After he tells them their eyes aren’t seeing, their ears aren’t hearing, and their minds aren’t remembering, Jesus walks them through some third-grade math, reminding them of the many baskets full of bread left over after he fed the crowds. But the disciples still don’t get it. They don’t understand, even though they have God, very literally in the flesh, sitting right there with them in the boat.


      I forget God’s power, too, sometimes. When I’m watching the news on my screens, hearing of devastation in my friends’ lives, or providing care for a relative, I can feel overwhelmed and adrift. I find hope, though, in two simple words from today’s scripture lesson: “Not yet.” Jesus hasn’t and will not give up on any of his disciples, not back then in the boat and not today, with us.


      MOVING FORWARD: When you struggle to see God in the midst of a difficult situation, remember the two words from Jesus: “Not yet.” 



      (Source: Forward Day by Day Movement)

       
       
       

      Moving Forward - 4 February 2025


        Mark 8:5a He asked them, “How many loaves do you have?” 


        I love that Jesus doesn’t get annoyed, alarmed, or outwardly disappointed when the disciples don’t get it. That’s a relief because so often, I don’t get it either. It’s so much easier for me to see what’s impossible about a situation than it is for me to risk imagining what is possible.

        I am grateful when, instead of cussing, fussing, or lecturing, Jesus simply asks, “What do you have available?” So often, it’s not about what we don’t have or can’t do; it’s about offering what we do have and what we can do. The blessing and breaking of the bread by Jesus is what moves us from what’s most likely to what is miraculous. When we choose to partner with Jesus, he leads us from the limitations of our experience to the wonder of God’s economy…the miracle of more than enough.


        MOVING FORWARD: Reflect on how you might answer Jesus’s question: “What do you have available?”



        (Source: Forward Day by Day Movement)

         
         
         
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