This short poem could be part of our prayer this Lent:
A Prayer to Own Your Beauty
O God
help me
to believe
the truth about myself
no matter
how beautiful it is!
20
-by Macrina Wiederkehr
This is not narcissism. This is what happens when prayer helps me stand more honestly before God, in whose image I was made.
One of the realities we find most difficult to accept is how beautiful we are in God's eyes: how beloved is each of us in God's heart...
When I see your heavens, the work of your fingers,There are times when my faults and failures may blind me to the goodness of the person God made me to be, the person God loves in me. Lent, of course, is a time to acknowledge my sins and seek God's pardon. But I confess my need for God's mercy precisely so that I might be forgiven and stand more honestly and openly before my Maker, whose light reveals the person God made me to be.
the moon and stars that you set in place--
What are humans that you are mindful of them,
mere mortals that you care for them?
Yet you have made them little less than a god,
crowned them with glory and honor
You have given them rule over the works of your hands,
put all things at their feet...
- Psalm 8
Take some time to ponder these questions and bring you reflections to your 10 minutes of prayer...
Who am I?
Who am I in my eyes? Who am I in God's eyes?
I am the handiwork of God, made in the image of my Creator...
The truth about me is that I am God's beloved...
Many things conspire to keep me from this truth
but the truth is that I am the apple of God's eye...
O God, help me to believe the truth about myself,
no matter how beautiful it is...
No matter how difficult it is for me to see it...
No matter how difficult it is for me to accept it...
No matter how difficult it is for me to see in my self
what you see, Lord..
Help me to see how good is the person you made me to be
and to rejoice in your love for me...
Are you new to "Praying 10 Minutes a Day in Lent" - or are you having trouble getting started? The first installment offers some thoughts on getting started, as do the subsequent posts in the series. So take a look and join us!
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Fr Austin
ReplyDeleteThanks for the great reflection.
Only when we truly know and accept we are LOVED for who we are, only then can we truly LOVE others. We can't give what we don't have.
As Henri Nouwen writes in "Life of the Beloved" we are We are the beloved, we are Chosen by Christ.
In "Becoming Who You Are," Fr James Martin encourages all of us to embrace the way that God made us, the circumstances of our lives, and our unique path to holiness.
We are Beloved...We are all called to be Holy.
Blessings,
Francine