BEING AND BECOMING PRAYERFUL (12)

BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD.

(Psalm 46:10)

Be in your prayer space, follow the usual steps and settle into silence.

Sit still…..Relax…….Do not rush………

Take a couple of gentle, slow and deep breaths…becoming aware of your breath going in and out… stay focused on this breath of life……

Settle into silence, into peacefulness, into profound silence, into pure joy. Keep listening in such quietness and serenity. Come to that place, that space within, that place of deep silence and Solitude; to just being here and now without having to accomplish something.

Now I invite you to consecrate this day and all that come with this day….in your own way, in humble, simple, may be even inadequate words………..

Now from the depth of your heart begin to wish your mind well…..

Our last meditation was on being attentive to the deepest desires of our hearts – desire for, forgiveness, healing, peace, harmony, integrity, wholeness, holiness and everything that can bring our wills into harmony with the will of God. We want to continue to nurture this desire. This meditation again is another opportunity to dwell in God’s presence and hunger and thirst for His will and purpose for us.

Take a few deep breaths right now…slow and gentle!

Breathe in God’s Way and breathe out my way – God’s way in, My way out.

You may not be happy about it right now, but in the bigger picture of life, you’ll be glad you chose to surrender to God.

Pray from your heart……

O God, this morning I have come into the quietness and stillness of your presence, to begin the day, so that out of this moment, I may take with me a quiet serenity, which will last me through the rough and smooth of this day’s life. Many hours of the day are waiting to be filled a hundred ways with a hundred prayers. But, right now, at this very moment, I am at peace. You have blessed and Graced my day. I walk with you, God. I sit with you, God. I run with you, God. Thank you for the morning…Thank you for stillness….Thank you for blessing and grace…..Thank you for peacefulness…..Thank you for just being, for me, God…..Thank you. Amen

I have come with gratitude and with a prayer in my heart …….

• for the talents and the abundance of gifts that you have blessed me with………..
• for the faith that moves, stirs and grows in my heart…….
• for the many people who have been instruments of your goodness in my life…..
• for the moments that I have known your presence in my life….
• for the times I have been instrument of your goodness and grace and love……
• for the miracles of your love that I have witnessed…..
• for the wonder of your creation all around me…….

I have come with hope and a prayer in my heart for trust……..

• when I am afraid and lose confidence in me and in you…….
• when the busyness and schedules of my day press upon me and I become tense and nervous and doubtful…..
• when I doubt your presence in difficult moments in my life…..
• when I lose sight of your grace and blessings in my life…..
• when emptiness, loneliness and other such slings and arrows come my way…….
• when I struggle to be good and share your goodness with others

I have come seeking you with a prayer in my heart……..

• deep within my being, deep in my heart where justice and truth, love and peace embrace………….
• in the midst of my daily activities and the many things-to-do that keep me on the move…..
• among many people who come into my life……………..
• in the successes and disappointments of my daily activities……..
• in the books I read, in the news I hear, in the noise of the surroundings……..
• in the truth I discover, in the uncertainties I encounter……..
• in the wonderful people and in the not so wonderful people I meet…

I have come affirming with a simple and humble prayer in my heart…..

• that you are worth my constant search…….
• that you are in my life every moment of the day….
• that you walk with me as I walk toward you…..
• that you carry me through when I am unable to walk……
• that you pick me up and put me on the road when I stumble and fall…..
• that you are my strength in time of sorrow, hope in times of distress, comfort in times of confusion, safety in times of danger….
• that you are worth my sacrifice, my letting go off whatever I hang on to………
• that you seek me, trust me, love me unconditionally……..
• that you wait for me to welcome me home………
• that you, my God, are my home. Amen

Amen. May it be so. May YOUR WILL happen.

And, finally, Lord, I surrender to you and your way.

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Pray this again, gently, slowly

You have prayed,

I have come with gratitude….

I have come with hope….

I have come seeking…

I have come affirming……

Now write your own prayer by completing the sentence,

I have come………..

Don’t ask God for what you think is good;

Ask Him for what He thinks is good for you.

The God to whom we pray is a God of love, who is more ready to answer than we are ready to pray. We do not have to force His Gifts and His Grace out of Him. We do not come to a God who has to be coaxed, or pestered, or battered into answering our prayer. We come to the ONE who simply wills to give. We, actually, come into the presence of the ONE who has already GIVEN. We come with desire in our hearts and words on our lips: “Thy will be done.”

GOD IS PERFECT AND PERFECT WISDOM.

WE DO NOT PRAY IN ORDER TO CHANGE HIS WILL,

BUT TO BRING OUR WILLS INTO HARMONY WITH HIS.

(William Temple)

Fr. Gus Tharappel,msfs

BEING AND BECOMING PRAYERFUL (11)

BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD.

(Psalm 46:10)

Be in your prayer space, follow the usual steps and settle into silence.

Sit still…..Relax…….Do not rush………

Take a couple of gentle, slow and deep breaths…becoming aware of your breath going in and out… stay focused on this breath of life……

Settle into silence, into peacefulness, into profound silence, into pure joy. Keep listening in such quietness and serenity. Come to that place, that space within, that place of deep silence and Solitude; to just being here and now without having to accomplish something.

Now I invite you to consecrate this day and all that come with this day….in your own way, in humble, simple, may be even inadequate words………..

Now from the depth of your heart begin to wish your mind well…

Our last meditation was on being alert, awake, attentive, docile and sensitive. Often we catch ourselves being inattentive, insensitive, irrational and even making unwise choices. Being attentive to the deepest desires of our hearts enables us to bring our wills into harmony with the will of God and prayerfulness is a constant seeking of and surrender to God’s will.

Take a few deep breaths right now…slow and gentle!

Breathe in God’s Way and breathe out my way – God’s way in, My way out.

You may not be happy about it right now, but in the bigger picture of life, you’ll be glad you chose to surrender to God.

Lord, Thank you for the morning………………

Thank you for stillness………………..

Thank you for blessing and grace………………

Thank you for peacefulness…………

Thank you for just being, for me, God………..

I feel a deep, warm, comforting harmony within. Thank you, God. You are meeting my need now. You have blessed and Graced my day. Right now, at this very moment, I am at peace. Thank you. Amen.

O God, this morning I have come into the quietness and stillness of your presence, to begin the day, so that out of this moment, I may take with me a quiet serenity, which will last me through the rough and smooth of this day’s life. Many hours of the day are waiting to be filled a hundred ways with a hundred prayers. But, right now, at this very moment, I am at peace. I walk with you, God. I sit with you, God, I run with you, God. Thank you. Amen.

I have come now with gratitude for the blessings and the richness of the past and to celebrate them now and offer it to the world around me.

We recognize the pain of the past and bring healing……

I have come now remembering the brokenness, the hurt, the pain and the suffering of the past and praying for your healing touch and praying that you empower me to reach out and offer your gift of healing to the world around me.

We recognize the sin and guilt of the past and bring forgiveness…….

I have come remembering my own sin and guilt and shame of the past and praying for forgiveness, healing, peace and reconciliation within me and offer your gift of forgiveness to the world around me.

We glean the richness of the past and integrate it into our life in the present and offer it to the world around us…We recognize the blessing, grace, goodness, strength, virtue of the past and affirm and appreciate them and let them grow…..

I have come remembering the blessing, grace, goodness, strength, virtue of the past and desiring to affirm, appreciate and let them grow in me as well as in others around me.

We renew ourselves and nurture growth in ourselves, develop new attitudes, new vision, renewed hope……

I have come to find courage, to be patient enough not to give up hope, to accept disappointment without bitterness and to accept delay without complaint.

We desire/long/dream our way to wholeness, to holiness, to perfection……

I have come with my dream for healing, wholeness, integrity, holiness, perfection…..to be what you have made me to be, to become what you call me to become, to do what you call me to do.

We passionately, intensely pray our way to wholeness, to holiness, to perfection……

I have come to begin this day with you so that I may be able to continue it and end it with you with meaning, with joy, with peace and without regret.

We passionately cry, mourn our way to wholeness, to holiness, to perfection……

I have come mourning my loss – all kinds of losses resulting from all kinds of experiences. I have come mourning deeply, intensely and passionately about me, about others and about the world and praying that I may learn to care and not to care.

We passionately sing and dance our way to wholeness……

I have to come to sing a new song, a song of honor and glory and praise and thanks and joy and love and hope and peace……….I have come dancing to a new rhythm, new steps, new turns……..Lord, bless my song and grace my dance……….

God, grant me the serenity, to accept the things I can not change,

Courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.

Living one day at a time; Enjoying one moment at a time;

Accepting hardship as the pathway to peace.

Taking as He did, this sinful world, as it is, not as I would have it;

Trusting that He will make all things right, if I surrender to His will;

That I may be reasonably happy in this life,

And supremely happy forever in the next. (Reinhold Niebuhr, Union Theological Seminary, New York 1928)

Don’t ask God for what you think is good;

Ask Him for what He thinks is good for you.

The God to whom we pray is a God of love, who is more ready to answer than we are ready to pray. We do not have to force His Gifts and His Grace out of Him. We do not come to a God who has to be coaxed, or pestered, or battered into answering our prayer. We come to the ONE who simply wills to give. We, actually, come into the presence of the ONE who has already GIVEN. We come with desire in our hearts and words on our lips: “Thy will be done.”

GOD IS PERFECT AND PERFECT WISDOM.

WE DO NOT PRAY IN ORDER TO CHANGE HIS WILL,

BUT TO BRING OUR WILLS INTO HARMONY WITH HIS.

(William Temple)

Fr. Gus Tharappel,msfs

BEING AND BECOMING PRAYERFUL (10)

BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD.

(Psalm 46:10)

Be in your prayer space, follow the usual steps and settle into silence.

Sit still…..Relax…….Do not rush………

Take a couple of gentle, slow and deep breaths…becoming aware of your breath going in and out… stay focused on this breath of life……

Settle into silence, into peacefulness, into profound silence, into pure joy. Keep listening in such quietness and serenity. Come to that place, that space within, that place of deep silence and Solitude; to just being here and now without having to accomplish something.

Now I invite you to consecrate this day and all that come with this day….in your own way, in humble, simple, may be even inadequate words………..

Now from the depth of your heart begin to wish your mind well…

Our last meditation was on Prayerfulness as a desire and an act of self-surrender, as an ongoing practice of daily surrender to His will in all aspects of our life.

The mainspring and the core of the life of Jesus was one of continuous self-surrender. His life of obedience has taught us that the only way to peace is to do the will of God. There can be no peace when our will is at variance with the will of God; that the only way to fullness of Joy is to do the will of God. There can be no joy when our will is not aligned with the will of God.

Surrender to God is a choice we must make with every breath.

Choosing to surrender to God demands that we become attentive to what is going on inside of us, about us and around us. To be attentive is to be alert, awake, attentive, docile and sensitive. Often we catch ourselves being inattentive, insensitive, irrational and even making unwise choices. Being attentive to the deepest desires of our hearts enables us to bring our wills into harmony with the will of God. This meditation is on being attentive.

Take a few moments….Be still! Stay focused and Be attentive!

Take a few deep breaths right now…slow and gentle!

Breathe in God’s Way and breathe out my way – God’s way in, My way out.

You may not be happy about it right now, but in the bigger picture of life, you’ll be glad you chose to surrender to God.

Pay attention! You may have heard this from your parents or from your teachers. Maybe you’ve heard that from the policeman who just pulled you over. Maybe you are half-asleep during the sermon. Maybe you are thinking about something else when someone is trying to share important things about his/her life.

Maybe you are just going through the motions and have missed the moments of grace that God has put in front of you because you were not paying attention.

We are a people who have been gifted and sensitized by the Holy Spirit. We should be aware of what’s going on within us and around us. We are often so preoccupied with pursuing our own self-righteousness that we don’t know what’s going on around us or within us.

Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God……. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things (Colossians 3:1-2 ). To “set heart or mind” means pay attention…be attentive, be vigilant!

Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered (Mathew 10:29-31). Our heavenly Father is attentive to our needs…..His vigilance is constant!

Pay attention to your desires.  We have all kinds of desires.  Pay attention to those desires that need to be purified or abandoned. Bring your desires into harmony with the will of God!

Pay attention to those wonderful desires that are there but have not been acted upon and begin to respond to those desires. Bring your desires into harmony with the will of God!

Pay attention….be vigilant to the concerns and needs of those entrusted to your care.

It takes attentiveness, vigilance to teach sound doctrine, healthy values and morals; develop noble friendships and relationships…..

It takes Vigilance to enable others to discover and correct their mistakes……to help others watch their lives and their conduct. Our families, communities and churches are healthy when we are vigilant, when we are attentive to one another’s concerns and needs.

Attentiveness is a healthy disposition which nurtures a culture of meaningful relationship, genuine caring for one another that includes a certain openness of life between members in families and communities, where members discipline, instruct, serve, forgive, show compassion, mourn and rejoice with one another.

Be attentive to what is important and what is trivial, what needs action now and what is not really all that urgent. Be attentive to whatever is going on beneath the surface. There is always something beyond what seems urgent.

Be attentive to moments of grace that God puts in front of us.

There is a story about a man on a horse galloping swiftly along the road. An old farmer standing in the fields, seeing him pass by, called out, “Hey rider, where are you going?”. The rider turned around and shouted back, “Don’t ask me, ask my horse!”

This is the condition of many. They have lost control over the great powers that pull them forward toward an unknown direction. They have become passive victims of an ongoing movement which they do not understand.

Where are you going? Where’s your life going? Have you stopped to think about it recently?

Pay attention! The light may be ready to turn green! You better pay attention!

Notice the “moments of grace” in your life. These moments are not just something that happens to you…they are what you can offer someone else. The times that you can be there for someone, listen to someone, compliment someone, help someone…. serve someone. Those are the moments in your life worth paying attention to….they are moments of Grace and now is the moment of grace.

It takes real discipline to “attend to” – take note of – ordinary things. For most of us, it takes deliberate effort to be attentive. Major happenings like birth, moving, promotion, financial loss, death, etc. force themselves on our consciousness. The ordinary realities of life simply pass by; they just go by or we just go by them. Morning comes and evening comes, one day passes.

There were bells on the hill, but I never heard them ringing…

There were birds in the sky, but I never saw them winging..

(Meredith Wilson, The Music Man)

Be attentive…be Vigilant…Be present to the moment!

Now is the moment of Grace!

Don’t ask God for what you think is good;

Ask Him for what He thinks is good for you.

The God to whom we pray is a God of love, who is more ready to answer than we are ready to pray. We do not have to force His Gifts and His Grace out of Him. We do not come to a God who has to be coaxed, or pestered, or battered into answering our prayer. We come to the ONE who simply wills to give. We, actually, come into the presence of the ONE who has already GIVEN. We come with desire in our hearts and words on our lips: “Thy will be done.”

GOD IS PERFECT AND PERFECT WISDOM.

WE DO NOT PRAY IN ORDER TO CHANGE HIS WILL,

BUT TO BRING OUR WILLS INTO HARMONY WITH HIS.

(William Temple)

Fr. Gus Tharappel,msfs

BEING AND BECOMING PRAYERFUL (9)

BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD.

(Psalm 46:10)

Be in your prayer space, follow the usual steps and settle into silence.

Sit still…..Relax…….Do not rush………

Take a couple of gentle, slow and deep breaths…becoming aware of your breath going in and out… stay focused on this breath of life……

Settle into silence, into peacefulness, into profound silence, into pure joy. Keep listening in such quietness and serenity. Come to that place, that space within, that place of deep silence and Solitude; to just being here and now without having to accomplish something.

Now I invite you to consecrate this day and all that come with this day….in your own way, in humble, simple, may be even inadequate words………..

Now from the depth of your heart begin to wish your mind well…

Our last meditation was on Prayerfulness as an inner disposition, a disposition of heart and mind that longs for God’s will and surrenders to His will and purpose. Prayerfulness is an impelling desire for God’s ways and an ongoing, daily surrender to His will in all aspects of our life.

To pray is to open ourselves to the Father so that our entire life – from the seeking of daily bread to the transformation of the world – is filled with God’s will and purpose.

We reflected on surrender as an ongoing practice – not a one-time action! Surrender happens through many experiences and creative practices which help us connect with God and receive God’s blessing and grace…they help us care for the small things with love and bring us into the bigger, larger and greater picture.

We reflected and prayed “I find that thy will knows no end in me…When old words die out, new melodies break forth from the heart……….

We reflected and prayed “Give me the strength to raise my mind high above daily trifles…..”

We reflected and prayed “Give me the strength to surrender my strength to thy will with love…”

We continue to reflect on prayerfulness as a desire and an act of self-surrender, as an ongoing practice of daily surrender to His will in all aspects of our life.

One day, Jesus was in a Samaritan town. Tired form the journey, he took rest at Jacob’s well. The disciples went to buy provisions. On their return they found Jesus in conversation with a Samaritan women. They said to him, “Rabbi, eat something”. He responded, “I have food of which you do not know”. “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to complete his work” (John 4:1, 31-34). My food – what I hunger for, what I desire, what I long for, what would satisfy my deepest hunger is the Father’s will.

Jesus taught his disciples: “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness (God’s way), they will be satisfied” (Mathew 5:6).

Surrender to the Father’s will is what Jesus deeply desired. He was the only that we know was perfectly obedient to the will of the Father. Jesus did what he liked and loved and he did what the Father willed of him. He was sent by the Father with a mission (with orders) and he remained obedient. He says, “I have come, not to do my own will, but to do the will of him who sent me” (John 6:38); “I always do what is pleasing to him” (john 8:29). Jesus taught, the only proff of love is obedience (John 14:23).

The dynamic and the moving force, the mainspring and the core of the life of Jesus was one of continuous self-surrender. His life of obedience has taught us:

The only way to peace is to do the will of God. There can be no peace when our will is at variance with the will of God.

The only way to fullness of Joy is to do the will of God. There can be no joy when our will is not aligned with the will of God.

The only way to power is to do the will of God. When we go God’s way, we go with His power. When we go our way, we rely on our power which tends to weaken.

The only way to freedom is to do the will of God. We are free only in God’s wisdom. Our ignorance makes us unfree.

Surrendering to God and obeying His will and purpose for your life brings you into the abundance of his life and love that Jesus came to offer, “I have come so that you may have life to its fullness (John 10:10)” . If you hang on to your desires, plans and rights, you may be happy for awhile, a satisfaction for the moment, a sense of accomplishment for the present, or a temporary relief from stress or longing.

We are often tempted with transitory longings, desires of the moment, cravings for the passing pleasures of life. Surrender these passing, perishable longings to God, ride them out, choose obedience, rise above them, reach beyond them and attend to the deeper longings of your heart, the desire for God and God’s ways.

Surrendering our desires, wants, rights and wills is hard to do. We are all often like children. When we want something, we want something and we really want it! Those of you who have tried to go on a diet, knows well that if you don’t surrender your desires, wants and cravings, you will not have the desired result. The same is true of our spiritual life. If we do not surrender our desires and open ourselves to the will and purpose of God, we will not know the ultimate fulfillment of our life.

The Psalmist says:

Blessed is the man
who makes the Lord his trust,
who does not look to the proud,
to those who turn aside to false gods.

Sacrifice and offering you did not desire,
burnt offerings and sin offerings, you did not require.

Then I said, “Here I am, I have come,
it is written about me in the scroll.

I desire to do your will, O my God;
your law is within my heart.” (Psalm 40:4, 6,

Surrender to God is a choice we must make with every breath.

Take a few moments….Take a few deep breaths right now!

Breathe in God’s Way and breathe out my way – God’s way in, My way out.

You may not be happy about it right now, but in the bigger picture of life, you’ll be glad you chose to surrender to God.

Don’t ask God for what you think is good;

Ask Him for what He thinks is good for you.

The God to whom we pray is a God of love, who is more ready to answer than we are ready to pray. We do not have to force His Gifts and His Grace out of Him. We do not come to a God who has to be coaxed, or pestered, or battered into answering our prayer. We come to the ONE who simply wills to give. We, actually, come into the presence of the ONE who has already GIVEN. We come with desire in our hearts and words on our lips: “Thy will be done.”

GOD IS PERFECT AND PERFECT WISDOM.

WE DO NOT PRAY IN ORDER TO CHANGE HIS WILL,

BUT TO BRING OUR WILLS INTO HARMONY WITH HIS.

(William Temple)

Fr. Gus Tharappel,msfs