7/8/25
NIGHT PRAYER: Tuesday 7/8
So... I noticed that the first reading at mass today is the Genesis story of Jacob wrestling with an angel. I recalled writing about that many years ago so I went deep into the archives (2007) and found what I was looking for. Tonight's prayer then is preceded by that background on the Jacob story, followed by a Night Prayer...
Whoever are the opponents here, we know several things for sure. Jacob was no angel. His name in Hebrew means "trickster" and indeed he had cheated his brother Esau out of his birthright. Even here in Genesis 32, Jacob is hustling off in the dark of night to escape his brother's advance on him and it's then that the wrestling event ensues.
The story may suggest a few questions for reflection and prayer:
We all wrestle with issues human and divine, flesh and spirit. Some of us may be in the first period of the match and some of us may be limping away from the mat! Our divine opponent respects our efforts and, though greater and stronger than us, will never take advantage of our weaknesses.
Image by Wayne Forte
The first scripture at Mass today was the story of Jacob at Peniel.
Jacob was no angel, but he wrestled one.
In the course of the night, Jacob arose, took his two wives, children and servants and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. After he had taken them across the stream and had brought over all his possessions, Jacob was left there alone. Then some man wrestled with him until the break of dawn. When the man saw that he could not prevail over him, he struck Jacob's hip at its socket, so that the hip socket was wrenched as they wrestled.Some say Jacob wrestled with an angel, some say he wrestled with God. The scripture tells us he "contended with divine and human beings" and prevailed. It's also suggested that the wrestling match here is Flesh Vs. Spirit in Jacob's heart.
The man then said, "Let me go, for it is daybreak." But Jacob said, "I will not let you go until you bless me.""What is your name?" the man asked. He answered, "Jacob."
Then the man said, "You shall no longer be spoken of as Jacob, but as Israel, because you have contended with divine and human beings and have prevailed." Jacob named the place Peniel, "Because I have seen God face to face," he said, "yet my life has been spared."
At sunrise, as he left Peniel, Jacob limped along because of his hip. That is why, to this day, the children of Israel do not eat the sciatic muscle that is on the hip socket, inasmuch as Jacob's hip socket was struck at the sciatic muscle.
Whoever are the opponents here, we know several things for sure. Jacob was no angel. His name in Hebrew means "trickster" and indeed he had cheated his brother Esau out of his birthright. Even here in Genesis 32, Jacob is hustling off in the dark of night to escape his brother's advance on him and it's then that the wrestling event ensues.
The story may suggest a few questions for reflection and prayer:
What kind of spiritual wrestling do I engage in?The good news in the Jacob story is that God respects my efforts and allows me to survive my match with the Divine. I survive not because I am the superior contestant but rather because God calls the match before I suffer defeat. But I don't escape unscathed when I go up against God. His strong hold leaves its mark on me or, as in the case of Jacob's hip, deep within me. But it's a healing mark: I'm branded, tattooed, by my encounter with the Divine.
Angels are God's messengers: how do I wrestle with God's messages to me in the scriptures? in Church teaching? in my prayer? in my conscience?
Do I try to wrestle with God himself? Does something within (hurt, anger, disappointment) prod me to square off with God, hoping to pin and submit him to my own will and way?
Or is it the struggle between the flesh and spirit that provides the mat on which I wrestle with choices I make in life and their consequences?
We all wrestle with issues human and divine, flesh and spirit. Some of us may be in the first period of the match and some of us may be limping away from the mat! Our divine opponent respects our efforts and, though greater and stronger than us, will never take advantage of our weaknesses.
For Night Prayer, keep this scripture in mind and heart:
"My grace is sufficient for you,
for power is made perfect in weakness,"
says the Lord.
I will rather boast most gladly of my weaknesses,
in order that the power of Christ may dwell with me.
Therefore, I am content with weaknesses, insults,
hardships, persecutions, and constraints,
for the sake of Christ;
for when I am weak, then I am strong... "
for power is made perfect in weakness,"
says the Lord.
I will rather boast most gladly of my weaknesses,
in order that the power of Christ may dwell with me.
Therefore, I am content with weaknesses, insults,
hardships, persecutions, and constraints,
for the sake of Christ;
for when I am weak, then I am strong... "
I know that it's in my weakness, Lord,
and in my facing, accepting my powerlessness,
that I’ll come to know your strength
and welcome your grace to dwell in me
and to surrender myself
to your loving, strong embrace...
When I boast of my own strength,
I fail, Lord...
When I count on my own power,
I'm soon defeated...
When I believe that I can change my ways
- without confessing my sins
and my need for you -
I get lost in confusing circles,
on paths that lead me back once again
to the weakness of my own efforts…
I'm so often lost in doubt and fear
though I know you're there by my side, Lord,
waiting for me to surrender,
to free fall from my foolish pride
into your arms, into your hands,
outstretched to catch and save me...
Help me name my weaknesses, Lord,
and in my facing, accepting my powerlessness,
that I’ll come to know your strength
and welcome your grace to dwell in me
and to surrender myself
to your loving, strong embrace...
When I boast of my own strength,
I fail, Lord...
When I count on my own power,
I'm soon defeated...
When I believe that I can change my ways
- without confessing my sins
and my need for you -
I get lost in confusing circles,
on paths that lead me back once again
to the weakness of my own efforts…
I'm so often lost in doubt and fear
though I know you're there by my side, Lord,
waiting for me to surrender,
to free fall from my foolish pride
into your arms, into your hands,
outstretched to catch and save me...
Help me name my weaknesses, Lord,
help me face them, even boast of them:
that I might let go what holds me back
and gladly welcome into my soul,
your strength, your power,
your presence, your peace…
Send your Spirit to free me
from all my constraints:
to unlock the shackles of habit,
to loosen the bonds of fear,
to untie the ropes of self-doubt,
to free me from all that holds me back
from becoming the person you made me to be..,
In some small ways that I can see, Lord,
help me find in my weakness
your promise of strength,
your victory, your peace and your grace…
In my wrestling with you,
defeat me, Lord!
Let your mercy conquer
my sins and my failings!
Let the strength of your grace
overcome my pride!
With all that you have,
overwhelm me, Lord:
your victory, the prize I seek...
In the quiet of my prayer, right now, Lord,
help me trust that you’re by my side…
In the quiet of my prayer, right now, Lord,
open my heart to your love and your grace…
In the quiet of my prayer, right now, Lord,
let me boast of my weakness
as the path, the portal
to my finding my strength in you...
In the stillness of my prayer, let me free fall
into the peace you hold out for me -
and catch me and save me now, Lord,
in your strong and outstretched arms...
Protect me, Lord, while I'm awake
and watch over me while I sleep
that awake, I might keep watch with you
and asleep, rest in your peace...
Amen.
that I might let go what holds me back
and gladly welcome into my soul,
your strength, your power,
your presence, your peace…
Send your Spirit to free me
from all my constraints:
to unlock the shackles of habit,
to loosen the bonds of fear,
to untie the ropes of self-doubt,
to free me from all that holds me back
from becoming the person you made me to be..,
In some small ways that I can see, Lord,
help me find in my weakness
your promise of strength,
your victory, your peace and your grace…
In my wrestling with you,
defeat me, Lord!
Let your mercy conquer
my sins and my failings!
Let the strength of your grace
overcome my pride!
With all that you have,
overwhelm me, Lord:
your victory, the prize I seek...
In the quiet of my prayer, right now, Lord,
help me trust that you’re by my side…
In the quiet of my prayer, right now, Lord,
open my heart to your love and your grace…
In the quiet of my prayer, right now, Lord,
let me boast of my weakness
as the path, the portal
to my finding my strength in you...
In the stillness of my prayer, let me free fall
into the peace you hold out for me -
and catch me and save me now, Lord,
in your strong and outstretched arms...
Protect me, Lord, while I'm awake
and watch over me while I sleep
that awake, I might keep watch with you
and asleep, rest in your peace...
Amen.
Reading the story of Jacob near the top of this post
will help you appreciate this song...
Jacob's Song by Gabrielle Ariana
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Pause for Prayer: TUESDAY 7/8
Who wants war, Lord?
In the face of international conflict,
who prefers armed conflict to diplomacy?
Who wants to settle territorial disputes
by starving and bombing some people
who've crossed a line on a map?
Who wants to send their sons and daughters
to fight a war in a foreign land?
Would you take a survey for us, Lord?
Would you poll all the people of the world
and ask them the questions above?
Ask all the people, Lord, and not just those
in the war rooms and board rooms,
ask all the people, Lord:
Who wants war?
I know my questions are simple,
perhaps naive and too idealistic,
but it brings me comfort, Lord,
to consider things as they ought to be,
as you desire them to be,
as you call us to shape the world
and live together in it...
Who wants war?
Not too many, Lord,
as I think your poll would reveal...
Who wants war?
Not the powerless poor,
the most innocent victims...
Who wants war?
No one in their right mind
wants war, Lord....
No one who reveres life
wants war, Lord...
No one who seeks peace
wants war, Lord...
No one who walks your path
wants war, Lord...
None who love their neighbor
want war, Lord...
No one who loves you
wants war, Lord...
Help us, Lord, we pray,
to stop waging wars
we do not want...
Amen.
7/7/25
NIGHT PRAYER: Monday 7/7
I wrote this prayer 11 years ago and have posted it several times over the past decade. The fact that it still "fits me" is a confession of how slowly I grow in the spiritual life -and- a testimony to God's merciful patience with me! Here's the latest version of this prayer...
Lord, sometimes I look back upon the last few days, the week just
past - or even over months and years - and catch a glimpse or two (or more) of how your grace has brought
me to the present moment through all those trials and troubles that seemed,
even yesterday, to be impossible, irreparable, impassable...
But, here I am tonight, Lord! I've made it through these days and months and years - and only with your help and by your grace...
But, here I am tonight, Lord! I've made it through these days and months and years - and only with your help and by your grace...
No, not everything has been resolved - but here I am - tonight - with you - and that's a very good place for me to be...
Sometimes, Lord, I only glimpse your grace when I look in the rearview mirror. I so often fail to see your helping hand in all the ways you reach out to help, encourage and support me. You lift me up when I am down... You lead me on when I hang back... You draw me out of my resentment, my anger and self-pity...
I let myself get in the way, Lord: I look down instead of up, I look in instead of out, I think the worst and not the best, I give up hope when hope's exactly what I need the very most...
I
get in the way, Lord: I close my eyes and ears, my mind and heart... I miss the ways you're there, right there by my side, to protect and guard and guide me...
I get in my own way, Lord, and I stumble and trip over disappointment, fear and worry. I get in my own way and fail to see you're there for me in just the ways I need you. I get in my own way, Lord, and miss the many ways you call to me:
Sometimes, Lord, I only glimpse your grace when I look in the rearview mirror. I so often fail to see your helping hand in all the ways you reach out to help, encourage and support me. You lift me up when I am down... You lead me on when I hang back... You draw me out of my resentment, my anger and self-pity...
I let myself get in the way, Lord: I look down instead of up, I look in instead of out, I think the worst and not the best, I give up hope when hope's exactly what I need the very most...
I get in my own way, Lord, and I stumble and trip over disappointment, fear and worry. I get in my own way and fail to see you're there for me in just the ways I need you. I get in my own way, Lord, and miss the many ways you call to me:
Wake up! Get up! Shape up!
Lean on me! Depend on me! Rely on me!
And remember that I'm always with you,
right by your side...
One day at a time is all you ask of me, Lord, and every day is just how often you reach out : to help me through, to lead me through, to get me through, to carry me through all the toil, troubles and trials that seemed, just yesterday, last week, last month, last year, to be impossible, impassable, irreparable...
Open my mind and heart, Lord... open my eyes and ears and all my senses to your presence all around me and to all the grace you offer me - each and every day - just one day at a time...
One day at a time is all you ask of me, Lord, and every day is just how often you reach out : to help me through, to lead me through, to get me through, to carry me through all the toil, troubles and trials that seemed, just yesterday, last week, last month, last year, to be impossible, impassable, irreparable...
Open my mind and heart, Lord... open my eyes and ears and all my senses to your presence all around me and to all the grace you offer me - each and every day - just one day at a time...
Protect me, Lord, while I'm awake
and watch over me while I sleep
that awake, I might keep watch with you
and asleep, rest in your peace...
Amen.
See Me Through It by Brandon Heath
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MONDAY MORNING OFFERING: 7/7
 |
| Image: George Mendoza |
Good morning, good God!
We come this morning to offer hearts, Lord,
filled to overflowing with distress and sorrow
at the tragic news from Kerr County...
So much of the time, the Guadalupe
is life-giving, calm and beautiful...
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But a combination of topography, geology, and climate
give rise to deadly flash floods
thundering through Texas Hill Country...
So as we pray, Lord, we ask..
How can disaster be natural?
Why does creation turn in on itself?
How can water,
a life-giving blessing,
become in a flash,
a death-dealing curse?
We ask, Lord, and we pray...
We join the church in Texas, Lord,
in the words of the prayer they're offering:
God of Mercy and Shelter,
In this time of devastation and loss,
In this time of devastation and loss,
we lift up our hearts to You.
Be close to all who suffer
Be close to all who suffer
from the flooding in our communities.
Embrace those who mourn,
shelter the displaced,
strengthen the weary,
and inspire all of us
Embrace those who mourn,
shelter the displaced,
strengthen the weary,
and inspire all of us
to offer loving assistance to those in need...*
We offer our prayers and our help...
Lord, have mercy on your people!
Kyrie eleison, Christe eleison, Kyrie eleison!
*Archdiocese of San Antonio, Texas
After the Flood
by David Bjorlin and Mark Miller
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After the flood what can remain
but shattered homes and lasting pain
the ground is wrecked by rubble and blood
as wastelands widen after the flood
Kyrie eleison!
Christe eleison!
Kyrie eleison!
After the flood, frail hope appears
from seeds we’ve watered with our tears
and tender shoots spring up from the mud
as life emerges after the flood.
After the flood, repairs are planned;
the helpers come to lend a hand
and beauty blossoms four from the bud
as God renews us after the flood
7/6/25
NIGHT PRAYER: Sunday 7/6
Sunday's Night Prayer usually takes its lead from the day's liturgy but since it's still the weekend of the Fourth, we'll let the our nation's blessings and problems bring us to prayer...
Help us keep in mind and heart, Lord, that
Independence was declared with perfect unanimity...
Oh, discord and division there had been
- but then let go -
for the sake of something greater,
something stronger,
something nobler:
the welfare of the whole...
The rights of all as equals numbered three,
Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness,
rights were understood to be
self-evident, unalienable,
endowed on each and all
by you, Lord, our Creator...
But now in our pride and greed:
we argue and debate the self-evident,
we deny and restrict the unalienable,
we trade liberty for license,
mistake pleasure for happiness
and redefine the terms
of what once we held so dear...
We've forgotten so much, Lord
when there's so much to remember,
to repent of and reform,
to restore and redirect
to recover and reshape...
In those who govern our nation, Lord,
in those who mete out justice,
in those who make the law,
and in the minds and hearts of all:
stir up love and devotion
to those simple self-evident truths
that long ago laid the foundation
of this country we call home...
Protect us, Lord while we're awake
]and watch over us while we sleep
that awake, we might keep watch with you
and asleep, rest in your peace...
Amen.
Tonight's
music is a simple, instrumental variation on a familiar patriotic song. Listen for the moment when the melody itself feels the pain
of all we've forgotten - and then moves on to what can be ours again -
if we would only remember...
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7/5/25
Pause for Prayer: SUNDAY 7/6
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| Walden Pond: Photo by Jay Ashe |
Lord,
how easily, how quickly, how often
I forget, ignore and even reject the truth
that I'm created in nothing less
than your very image...
that I'm created in nothing less
than your very image...
In your divine image, Lord,
you created me,
intending for me to reflect and mirror
your beauty and balance, your brilliance...
And on those days, Lord,
when I know and welcome your Spirit's breath,
when I know and welcome your Spirit's breath,
claiming and calming my troubled waters;
on those days, Lord,
like Walden's silvered surface
my soul mirrors back
on those days, Lord,
like Walden's silvered surface
my soul mirrors back
just a shimmer of that beauty
in whose image I was
in whose image I was
carefully, uniquely made...
Purify and cleanse me, Lord:
reach into the depths
of my worries and my fears
and give me peace,
reach into the depths
of my worries and my fears
and give me peace,
your calming peace
'til I am still
with you...
Let your peace, deep within me
give me all I need to mirror
all the beauty and the brilliance
of the One, in whose image
give me all I need to mirror
all the beauty and the brilliance
of the One, in whose image
I've been fashioned,
I've been made...
Amen.
Night Prayer: SATURDAY 7/5
"The Fourth" is over
but its weekend lingers on
in streams of tears and pride
coursing through my loyal heart
and meeting down
in some deep place
where grief, my grief
for something lost,
is held, consoled and brightened
by a flame that will not die...
Keep that flame alive, Lord:
let nothing damp its light
or cool its warmth;
let it burn as brightly now
as it did so long ago
when patriot blood
and wisdom keen
first lit the torch of liberty
and passed the lamp along...
Protect me, Lord, while I'm awake
and watch over me while I sleep
that awake, I might keep watch with you
and asleep, rest in your peace...
Hymn to the Eternal Flame
music by Stephen Paulus
lyrics by Michael Dennis Browne
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Every face is in you, every voice,
Every sorrow in you.
Every pity, every love,
Every memory, woven into fire.
Every breath is in you, every cry,
Every breath is in you, every cry,
Every longing in you.
Every singing, every hope,
Every healing, woven into fire.
Every heart is in you,
Every heart is in you,
Every tongue, every trembling in you,
Every blessing, every soul,
Every shining, woven into fire.
7/4/25
Pause for Prayer: SATURDAY 7/5
Thank you, Lord, for Merton's words: so concise and so compelling in their comfort and their challenge...
I need to be reminded, Lord: no matter how confident and cocky I am in my discernment - I can't know or comprehend the whole of all that's going on...
And no matter how sure I am of my insight and my foresight, I have no way of predicting just what will happen next...
I need to look beyond all the troubles in the news arresting my attention - and tempting me think: it's all done, it's over, there's nothing I can do...
I cannot be defeated. I have to keep on searching - now, in the present moment - for the challenge these days bring: for all the possibilities, the what-if-opportunities, the wisdom of the ways you open up and bid me come...
Bid me come, Lord, and embrace the work of moving on... moving toward tomorrow with the courage of my faith and the hope that comes of trusting: all shall be well, all shall be well, all shall be well when I'm with you...
Amen.
NIGHT PRAYER: Friday 7/4
On Independence Day, we look at some of those realities from which we pray to be independent - and thus free to be more dependent on the Lord...
Lord...
Keep me hungry for what's real,
independent of my fantasies...
Keep me honest in my speech,
independent of the easy lie...
Keep me loyal to your word
independent of my willfulness...
Keep me just in all my dealings,
independent of deceit...
Keep me loyal to what's true,
independent of the counterfeit...
Keep me constant in compassion,
independent of self-interest...
Keep me loyal to my friends,
independent of my jealousy...
Keep me strong in self-awareness,
independent of my pride...
Keep me humble and forgiving,
independent of conceit...
Keep me positive and trusting,
independent of my fears...
Keep me hungry for your wisdom,independent of my foolish words and deeds...
Keep me constant in my hope,
independent of my worries...
Keep me faithful to my prayer,
independent of distraction...
Keep me steadfast in my faith,
independent of my doubt...
Keep me dependent on your love, Lord,
on your mercy and your grace;
free my heart to live in freedom,
independent of all else...
Protect me, Lord, while I'm awake,keep vigil while I sleepthat awake, I might keep watch with youand asleep rest in your peace...
Amen.
Freedom Is Coming (South African)
sung by Sunday 7pm Choir
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Freedom is coming, freedom is coming,
freedom is coming, oh, yes I know!
Jesus is coming, Jesus is coming,
Jesus is coming, oh, yes I know!
Freedom is coming, freedom is coming,
freedom is coming, oh, yes I know!
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