Just as the power of the sun is the only force in the natural universe that causes a plant to grow against gravity, so the grace of God is the only force in the spiritual universe that causes a person to grow against the gravity of their own ego.
- Simone Weil (Open to the grace of the Spirit. Be grown this day.)
Christianity and Spirituality monthly forum
Meets online the first Thursday of every month (beginning July 6) from 7:30 - 8:30 p.m. CDT for prayer, teaching and discussion. Sign up for Zoom link and topic notifications. Suggested topics welcomed. No registration fee.
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2 Cor 11:1-11; Ps 111:1b-2, 3-4, 7-8 Mt 6:7-15 Jesus said to his disciples:
"In praying, do not babble like the pagans,
who think that they will be heard because of their many words.
Do not be like them.
Your Father knows what you need before you ask him. "This is how you are to pray: 'Our Father who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name,
thy Kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily
bread;
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.' "If you forgive others their transgressions,
your heavenly Father will forgive you.
But if you do not
forgive others,
neither will your Father forgive your transgressions."
Reflection on the Scriptures
Consider what John Cassian (360-435 AD), an early church father who lived for
several years with the monks in Bethlehem and Egypt before founding a monastery in southern Gaul, wrote about the Lord's Prayer and the necessity of forgiving one another from the heart: "The mercy of God is
beyond description. While he is offering us a model prayer he is teaching us a way of life whereby we can be pleasing in his sight. But that is not all. In this same prayer he gives us an easy method for attracting an indulgent and merciful judgment on our lives. He gives us the possibility of ourselves mitigating the sentence hanging over us and of compelling him to pardon us. What else could he do in the face of our generosity when we ask him to forgive us as we have forgiven our neighbor? If
we are faithful in this prayer, each of us will ask forgiveness for our own failings after we have forgiven the sins of those who have sinned against us, not only those who have sinned against our Master. There is, in fact, in some of us a very bad habit. We treat our sins against God, however appalling, with gentle indulgence - but when by contrast it is a matter of sins against us ourselves, albeit very tiny ones, we exact reparation with ruthless severity. Anyone who has not forgiven from the
bottom of the heart the brother or sister who has done him wrong will only obtain from this prayer his own condemnation, rather than any mercy." Do you treat others as you think they deserve to be treated, or do you treat them as
the Lord has treated you - with mercy, steadfast love, and kindness? Father in heaven, you have given me a mind to know you, a will to serve you, and a heart to love you. Give me today the grace and strength to embrace your
holy will and fill my heart with your love that all my intentions and actions may be pleasing to you. Give me the grace to be charitable in thought, kind in deed, and loving in speech towards all.
-by dailyscripture.net
Proverbs for Perspective and Spiritual Living by Philip St. Romain, M.S., D. Min. From Pathways to Serenity, 1989, Liguori Publications; reprinted by Contemplative Ministries, Inc., 2013 (Minor editing applied.)
- https://shalomplace.com/view/pathview.html Included in Light for the Christian Journey, 2020: Contemplative Ministries, Inc.
https://shalomplace.com/view/light-journey.html
V. Discernment
5. Feel your feelings before you analyze their roots. To move beyond feelings too quickly is to invite intellectual stagnation.
6. Do not evaluate your spiritual exercises under any other criterion than their ability to help you to love in this moment.
7. If you surrender yourself to God with
the full intent of doing his will — however unpleasant it may be — you may rest assured that God has accepted your surrender and is even now drawing you in the direction you need to go.
8. Confused? In turmoil? If a person with your issues came to you in such a frame of mind, what would you recommend? Listen to your Inner
Adviser for the answer.
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