Week of Prayer for Christian Unity 1/18 – 25
We will gather each day at 3:00 pm at the church for an hour of scripture, meditation, and prayer based on a particular theme followed by a special devotion. Not able to attend? All prayers will be posted on our daily eBlast, website and Facebook so we can pray together in spirit.
Today's Schedule:
3:00pm Gather and pray for Christian Unity
3:30pm Chaplet of Divine Mercy for all those who have died of COVID
4:00pm Novena to St. Joseph for protection for our families and the Church
4:30pm Silent prayer until the ringing of the bells at 4:30pm
Today’s prayers…
Day 2: Maturing internally
“Abide in me as I abide in you” (Jn 15:4a)
Eph 3:14-21 May Christ dwell in our hearts
Lk 2:41-52 Mary treasured all these things
Meditation
The encounter with Jesus gives rise to the desire to stay with him and to abide in him: a time in which fruit matures.
Being fully human, like us Jesus grew and matured. He lived a simple life, rooted in the practices of his Jewish faith. In this hidden life in Nazareth, where apparently nothing extraordinary happened, the presence of the Father nourished him.
Mary contemplated the actions of God in her life and in that of her son. She treasured all these things in her heart. Thus, little by little, she embraced the mystery of Jesus.
We too need a long period of maturation, an entire lifetime, in order to plumb the depths of Christ's love, to let him abide in us and for us to abide in him. Without our knowing how, the Spirit makes Christ dwell in our hearts. And it is through prayer, by listening to the word, in sharing with others, by putting into practice what we have understood, that the inner being is strengthened.
“
Letting Christ descend into the depths of our being … He will penetrate the regions of the mind and the heart, he will reach our flesh unto our innermost being, so that we too will one day experience the depths of mercy.”
The Sources of Taizé (2000) p. 134
Prayer
Holy Spirit,
May we receive in our hearts the presence of Christ, and cherish it as a secret of love. Nourish our prayer,
enlighten our reading of Scripture, act through us, so that the fruits of your gifts can patiently grow in us.
Check back tomorrow for Day 3 of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. Have questions? Email the OLPH Devotions Ministries at heartsafireolph@gmail.com.
