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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 - 12 February 2025

    WEDNESDAY, February 12


    1 Timothy 1:15 The saying is sure and worthy of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the foremost. 


    When our mother moved our church membership from our former denomination to the Episcopal Church, I was enthralled. In love with books on Arthurian legend, my eight-year-old self couldn’t help but find beauty in the heavy, ornate vestments, the shining vessels on the altar, and the language of the Rite I liturgy. I was especially enamored of the prayer of humble access: “We are not worthy so much as to gather up the crumbs under thy table. But thou art the same Lord whose property is always to have mercy.” 


    To me, the words seemed a mix between the comfort of my favorite fairy tales and the warmth of my grandmother’s voice reading passages from the King James Bible. I knew I was beloved and made in the image of God, and yet God was so big, so wide, so infinite in wonder and beauty that I could never get near God on my own. And yet here I was! Divine mercy did that, divine mercy as an expression of deep, divine love. My little-girl self still catches her breath at the thought.


    MOVING FORWARD: What did you think about God as a child?



    (Source: Forward Day by Day Movement)

     
     
     

    Moving Forward - 11 February 2025


      Mark 9:43 If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life maimed than to have two hands and go to hell, to the unquenchable fire.


      Ouch. This is some of the most painful hyperbole we hear Jesus utter. Jesus sounds like a shock jock, and I’m no fan of that type of radio show or podcast hijinks. Still, shock does have its uses: entertaining, frightening folks, and grabbing attention among them. And who knows? Maybe Jesus is doing a little bit of all three in this passage. Self-maiming? Eternal fire? Jesus is doing some heavy hitting, going to great lengths to spell out the dangers of harming one another. We need to be wary of hands involved in the wrong activities, eyes roaming where they ought not, and feet carrying us where we shouldn’t go.


      Jesus doesn’t get much more specific than that, leaving us to fill in the very wide, personal, and communal blanks indicated in the use of these metaphors. We are to watch out for “little ones” new to the faith and anyone we might harm spiritually (including ourselves). What hurts one, hurts us all.


      MOVING FORWARD: What is your gut response when you read this verse?



      (Source: Forward Day by Day Movement)

       
       
       

      Moving Forward - 10 February 2025

        MONDAY, February 10, Scholastica


        Isaiah 58:6 Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke?


        The words of the prophet seem clear: in terms of spiritual discipline, the Divine desires sacrifice that is purposefully offered as a conduit of love. Does my fasting help me save money to give to the cause of the hungry? Am I doing actions, praying with my hands and feet, to help build homes for those who have no home or using my privilege to give voice and equality to those on the margins? 


        Deeper spiritual maturity comes when we practice the sacrifice of walking in care and solidarity with all humanity, especially suffering humanity. I know I’m more likely to give with that spirit when I am walking in care and solidarity with myself, receiving God’s love through spiritual practice and in communion with the faithful. I’m a firm believer that I can’t give what I don’t have, and thankfully, God always gives first. From there, O God, help me to give in sacrificial acts that show up as real and practical love.  


        MOVING FORWARD: What needs to change so that you can be spiritually healthy and able to give to and sacrifice for others?



        (Source: Forward Day by Day Movement)

         
         
         
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