direction, day 7

Come to Stillness: Take a few minutes to allow your mind and heart to be still before God.

Opening Prayer:
God be in my head, and in my understanding;
God be in mine eyes, and in my looking;
God be in my mouth, and in my speaking;
God be in my heart, and in my thinking;
God be at mine end, and at my departing.
~Sarum Primer, 16th century


Psalm for the Week: Psalm 17

Scripture for the Day: Proverbs 4:20-27

Reading for Reflection:

Those to whom spiritual guidance is entrusted should only lay bare faults as God prepares the heart to see them.  One must learn to watch a fault patiently, and take no external measure until God begins to make it felt by the inward conscience.  Nay, more: one must imitate God’s own way of dealing with the soul, softening rebuke, so that the person rebuffed, feels as if it was rather self-reproach, and a sense of wounded love, than God rebuking.  All other methods of guidance, reproving impatiently, or because one was vexed at infirmities, smack of earthly judgments, not the correction of grace.  It is imperfection rebuking the imperfect: it is a subtle, clinging self-love, which cannot see anything to forgive in the self-love of others.  The greater our own self-love, the more severe critics we shall be.  Nothing is so offensive to a haughty, sensitive, self-conceit as the self-conceit of others.  But, on the contrary, the love of God is full of consideration, forbearance, condescension, and tenderness.  It adapts itself, waits, and never moves more than one step at a time.  The less self-love we have, the more we know how to adapt ourselves to curing our neighbor’s failings of that kind; we learn better never to lance without putting plenty of healing ointment to the wound, never to purge the patient without feeding, never to risk an operation save when nature indicates its safety.  One learns to wait years before giving a salutary warning; to wait till Providence prepares suitable external circumstances, and grace opens the heart.  If you persist in gathering fruit before it is ripe, you simply waste your labor. (The Royal Way of the Cross by Francois Fenelon)

 

Reflection and Listening: silent and written

Prayer: for the church, for others, for myself

Song for the Week: All My Days
 

All my days I will sing this song of gladness
Give my praise to the Fountain of delights;
For in my helplessness You heard my cry,
And waves of mercy poured down on my life.

              
I will trust in the cross of my Redeemer,
I will sing of the blood that never fails;
Of sins forgiven, of conscience cleansed,
Of death defeated and life without end.

 

Beautiful Savior, Wonderful Counselor,
Clothed in majesty, Lord of history,
You’re the Way, the Truth, the Life.
Star of the Morning, glorious in holiness,
You’re the Risen One, heaven’s Champion,
And You reign, You reign over all!

 

I long to be where the praise is never-ending,
Yearn to dwell where the glory never fades
Where countless worshippers will share one song
And cries of ‘worthy’ will honor the Lamb!

 
Closing Prayer:
O heavenly Father, in whom we live and move and have our being: We humbly pray thee so to guide and govern us by thy Holy Spirit, that in all the cares and occupations of our life we may not forget thee, but may remember that we are ever walking in thy sight; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (The Book of Common Prayer)