Pause for Prayer: FRIDAY 10/2

On the Church calendar, today is the Feast of the Guardian Angels. (For another slice of angelfood prayer, see my post from this week's feast of the Archangels.)

 

It's not that I don't believe in angels, Lord 

    - I do!

 

But in all my years, I've never met 

    a wings-and-halo angel,

    a robed but disembodied spirit

    sent to bring me peace and light

    and messages from you...

I'm sure such angels do exist
and I trust they're watching over me
but of all the angels I have met -
    each one was was flesh and bone,
    warm blooded just like me...

Such angels cross my path, Lord,
  and almost every day:
    they wait for me and walk with me,
    listen to and speak with me,
    they have my back and take my side,
    they serve as guides and counsel me:
        my loyal friends, they're always there,
        they're always faithful, ever true...

 

Angels made of flesh and bone,

warm blooded and embodied:

    couriers with messages,

    swift heralds of your wisdom,

    speaking to my mind and heart  

    by email, text and word of mouth

    in prayer and conversation:

        angels I call friends, Lord

        and now and then (amazing grace!)

        they come disguised as strangers,

        unannounced and unexpected,

        bearing gifts you knew I needed,

        gifts of mercy, help and love... 

Send angels, Lord, to guard me:
    send angels winged and haloed

        and angels in disguise

     to hover all around me

        and protect me on my way,

    to keep and guard and guide me

        as I walk my path to you... 

Amen.

Voice of an Angel by Liam Lawton

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When I'm lying in the darkness
And I'm half afraid to sleep
I keep thinking of tomorrow
And the thoughts that lie so deep
Then I pray in talking whispers
Cause I know that somewhere near
Is the presence of an angel
Come to hold me through my fear

And who are you who guides me
My messenger of light
Will you walk beside me now
Beyond the day and night
Who are you who guides me
With words I cannot write
It's the voice of an angel,
The voice of an angel,
The voice of an angel
Come to hold me close this night

Then I close my eyes
And open the window of my heart
For I know that you will listen
Even though I kiss the dark
And as I'm slowly breathing
O the night just lingers on
I hear the voice of an angel
Come to calm me with the song

And who are you who guides me
My messenger of light
Will you walk beside me now
Beyond the day and night
Who are you who guides me
With words I cannot write
It's the voice of an angel,
The voice of an angel,
The voice of an angel
Come to hold me close this night

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NIGHT PRAYER: Thursday 10/1

 On an annual basis, the pope publishes a particular intention for prayer for each month of the year.  Here's the intention for October 2026: "Let us pray that the mental health ministry be established throughout the Church, helping to overcome the stigma and discrimination of persons with mental illnesses."

Before tonight's prayer, spend some time with this video of Pope Leo calling us to pray for this month's intention...

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I pray tonight, Lord, 

    for all who suffer from mental illness...  

    from PTSD... depression... eating disorders... 

    for those who live with anxiety disorders...  

    schizophrenia and bipolar disorder...  

    for those with neurodevopmental disorders...

    and disruptive behavior and dissocial disorders...  

 

I pray for patient and compassionate care

    for those who suffer in their thoughts, their emotions

    and their relationship to the world around them...

 

I pray for those who feel alone in their illness,

    who are misunderstood, judged and marginalized

and I pray for those who find it difficult

    to accept their need for treatment and medication...

 

I pray for a Church whose doors are wide open

    to those whose illness is often hidden, denied,

        undiagnosed or untreated...

 

I pray, Lord, 

    for those who live with and care for the mentally ill,

and I pray for all who research and treat 

    illness whose mystery is so hard to fathom and grasp...

 

Lord, I pray for the healing of all that afflicts 

    our minds and our spirits,

    our thoughts and self-awareness,

    our feelings and emotions

and all the ways we struggle 

    to relate to one another

        with compassion, understanding, 

            empathy and  grace...

 

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. 

 

Spirit of the Living God by Dan Iverson

 

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Pause for Prayer: THURSDAY 10/1

September is history!

    Where did that month go, Lord?

 

And we're in the 1oth month of the year!

    Seems like yesterday this year was new...

 

How have I used all that time, Lord?

How have I spent and shared that time?

    those hours, days, weeks and months

        - three quarters of a year?

 

What time have I spent with you, Lord,

    you who are with me 

        every minute of every day and night?

 

I'm always on your schedule, Lord

    - how much time do I set aside for you? 

 

For the blessings and burdens

    of these last 9 months

and for all the ways 

    you were present to me,

        in good times and in bad,

    I praise and thank you, Lord! 

 

And make me mindful of the time

    in the weeks and months ahead

        - October, November, December;

help me be a faithful steward

    of the gift of time that's mine 

from you, eternal God,

    the Lord beyond all time... 

 

Amen. 

 

Ain't Got Time by Hall Johnson

   performed by UGA Combined Choirs 

 

 

 

Lord, I keep so busy praising my Jesus,

     ain't got time to die!

'Cause when I'm healing the sick,
     I'm praising my Jesus!

'Cause it takes all of my time to praise my Jesus
    - if I don't praise him the rocks gonna cry out,
        "Glory and honor!"

Lord, I keep so busy working for the kingdom,
     ain't got time to die!

'Cause when I'm feeding the poor,
      ain't got time to die!

'Cause it takes all of my time to praise my Jesus
    - if I don't praise him the rocks gonna cry out,
        "Glory and honor!"

Lord, I keep so busy serving my Master,
     ain't got time to die!

'Cause when I'm giving my all,
     ain't got time to die!

'Cause it takes all of my time to praise my Jesus
    - if I don't praise him the rocks gonna cry out,
        "Glory and honor!"

Now, won't you get out of my way!    

   If I don't praise him the rocks gonna cry out,
        "Glory and honor!"
    Ain't got time to die!

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NIGHT PRAYER: Wednesday 9/30

Perhaps it's the time of year and the change of seasons... I've encountered so many people in the past week whose hearts are restless and troubled...  If your heart's restless tonight, I pray you'll find some peace in these words...

My heart is restless, Lord, 

    until it rests in you...  

        - Saint Augustine

 

My heart is anxious, Lord,

    'til it rests in your deep peace...

 

My heart is wounded, Lord,

     'til it rests in your healing arms...

 

My heart is grieving, Lord,

    'til it rests, again, in you, my joy...

 

My heart is worried, Lord,

     'til it rests and puts its trust in you...

 

My heart's impatient, Lord,

    'til it rests within your Spirit's calm...

My heart is tired, Lord,

    'til it rests, refreshed, restored in you...  

 

My heart is doubtful, Lord,

    'til it rests within your wisdom's truth...

 

My heart is waiting, Lord,

      'til it rests in you who wait for me...

 

My heart is restless, Lord,

    until it rests in you...

 

And my heart is peaceful, Lord,

    when it rests in you, in your embrace,

        in your forgiving, open arms...

 

Protect me in my restlessness,

    keep vigil while I sleep,

that awake, I'll keep the watch with you

    and rest and sleep in your deep peace...

 

Amen.

 

Restless by  Audrey Assad

 

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You dwell in songs that we are singing, 

Rising to the heavens, 

   rising to your heart, your heart. 

Our praises filling up the spaces  

In between our frailty 

   and everything you are  

You are the keeper of my heart  

 

And I'm restless, I'm restless

Til I rest in you, 'til I rest in you  

I am restless, I'm restless  

'Til I rest in you, 'til I rest in you  

Oh God, I wanna rest in you  

 

Oh, speak now for my soul is listening  

Say that you have saved me, 

whisper in the dark, the dark.  

'Cause I know you're more than my salvation  

Without you I am hopeless, 

   tell me who you are,

You are the keeper of my heart  

You are the keeper of my heart  

 

And I'm restless, I'm restless  

'Til I rest in you, 'til I rest in you  

I am restless, I'm restless  

'Til I rest in you, 'til I rest in you, 

Oh I wanna rest in you  

 

Still my heart, hold me close  

Let me hear, a still small voice 

Let it grow, let it rise Into a shout, into a cry  

Still my heart, hold me close 

And let me hear a still small voice 

And let it grow, let it rise  

Into a shout, into a cry  

 

And I am restless, I'm restless 

'Til I rest in you, let me rest in you 

And I am restless, so restless

Til I rest in you, 'til I rest in you, O God  

Let me rest in you

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Pause for Prayer: WEDNESDAY 9/30

 

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NIGHT PRAYER: Tuesday 9/29

We do not live for ourselves, 

    we do not die for ourselves.  

If we live, we live for the Lord, 

    and if we die, we die for the Lord.  

So living or dying, we belong to the Lord.

Romans 14:8-9 

 

Is that true, Lord? 

 

Do I belong to you? 

 

Am I yours - dead or alive?

 

Perhaps a better question, Lord, would be:

    to whom do I belong?

    to what do I belong? 

 

To whom do I owe my allegiance?

    To whom am I loyal?

To whom do I surrender 

        this person I call me?

Who truly knows me

    and therefore truly owns me?

Who's the boss of me? 

    Who has me?

Who holds and keeps me?

Whose spirit lives within me? 

Whose hand maps my journey?  

In whose embrace

    do I live and breathe - and die?

Whose love heals me, makes me whole

    and holds me together?

 

Do I belong to you, Lord?

    Or to someone else?

    To something else?

Or do I think, do I pretend

    that in fact, I own myself? 

 

I need to think about this, Lord!

I see how my answer here says so much

    about me and how I understand myself,

    about me and how I live with others,

    about me and how I spend my time,

    about me and how I love

        and whom I love,

    about me 

        and how I live and breathe and die...

 

I've got a fairly good idea,

    of what the answer to this question is,

        or should be, or could be, or can be...

 

Do I belong to you, Lord?

Oh yes, indeed, without a doubt - I do...

 

So then, help me, Lord:

    help me live as though I'm yours...

    help me live as though 

        you hold and keep me...

    help me live as though 

        there's no one else and nothing else

with any greater hold on me 

    - than you -

on my heart, my mind, my soul, my life...

 

Open, heal and free me, Lord,

    until I fall into your arms

as one who now belongs to you

    and always and always will... 

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. 

 

I Belong To You by Hillsong 

 

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NIGHT PRAYER: Tuesday 9/29

 

My most important task in this life, Lord

   is to know you and to love you

and apart from that

  -  nothing else is important -

except insofar as someone or something 

   might help me grow

        in my knowledge and love of you...

As quick as I am to say I love you

   (and it's likely I say this

      too often, too quickly)

I'm not so quick to say I know you

    - but how can I love you 

          if I don't know you?

And could I ever know you

    - and not come to love you? 

I want to know you better, Lord!

I want to know you

     - better than I know myself -

better than anyone or anything 

    that keeps me from knowing 

        - and loving you...

Then teach me to know you, Lord:

   to know you 

        and all of your loving ways,

   to know you 

        and find the depth of your truth,

   to know you, Lord, above all else

        that I might come to love you...

 

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. 

 

Knowing You by GUC

    performed by Thinathea 

 

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Lord I wanna know you
Better than I know myself
Teach me Lord, to know your ways
To know your truth...

Lord I wanna know you
Better than I know me
Teach me Lord, to know your ways
To know your truth...

Lord I wanna know you
Better than I know my weakness

Teach me Lord, to know your ways
To know your truth...

Lord I wanna know you
Better than I know myself
Teach me Lord, to know your ways
To know your truth...

Lord I wanna know you
Better than I know my weakness

Teach me Lord, to know your ways
To know your truth...

Rid me of the pride of this world
So that I can see you clearly
Teach me Lord,
To know your ways

Strip me of the pride of this world
So that I can see you clearly
Teach me Lord,
To know your ways

Strip me, strip me of this pride
So that I can see you clearly
Teach me Lord
To know your ways...

Keep on calling
Calling, I will answer
Keep on drawing
Drawing, I will come... (3 x)


Lord I truly wanna know you
Better than I know me
Teach me Lord, to know your ways
To know your truthLord I wanna know you
Better than I know my weakness
Teach me Lord, to know your ways
To know your Truth

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