Tag Archives: HolySpirit

Intimacy of Prayer

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Who can fathom the intimacy of prayer?
Your eyes never leave me.
Your Heart is ever open to my sighs.
You wait, watching to catch my eye.
You watch, waiting for a return of love ,
And suffer my distraction.

You listen for my footsteps.
You long to hear my voice,
And Your Heart leaps,
When I whisper Your Name.

Who can penetrate
The devotion of Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
To this poor work of Your Hand,
Waiting, waiting, waiting,
For the final touches of Your Love?

©2013 Joann Nelander

All rights reserved

Your Eyes Are Upon Me

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3

Your eyes are upon
Your lowly servant.
I have a sense
Of being with You
This day in Paradise.
I know you are here
With me,
In the Flesh
For these holy moments,
And, by my Baptism and Confirmation,
By character and grace
In Your Holy Spirit.

Amen to all you choose
To do in me.
I am Yours.
Make me a cleansed vessel
A vessel covered in gold
Fit for Your service,
A chalice full
Of willingness.
I pray, I wait, I obey.

Holy, holy,holy Lord.

Joann Nelander

Prayers of St. Gertrude the Great and St Mechtilde / catholictradition.org

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COVENANT WITH GOD

O ALMIGHTY God, I sanctify, dedicate, and consecrate to Thee every beating of my heart, and every pulsation of my blood; and I desire to make this compact with Thee, that their every beating shall say to Thee: Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of Sabaoth; and I beseech Thee to impute this meaning to them, so that they may be before Thy Divine Majesty as the unceasing echo of that heavenly canticle, which seraphims sing without ceasing unto Thee. Amen. Amen.

MORE EXTENDED COVENANT TO BE RENEWED EVERY WEEK

The great efficacy of this covenant may be shown thus: Were a person to resolve that by every movement he made he wished to be understood to ratify and approve all the sins that are committed all over the earth, and to be held a partaker of them, it is easy to see what guilt he would thus contract. And if such an intention would have so great influence for evil, why should it not have immense force and merit for good?

O LORD God, my Creator, all my desire is before Thee, and my groaning is not hidden from Thee; but inasmuch as the necessities of this life prevent the constant application of my mind to Thy praise, I make with Thee this covenant, earnestly desiring that it may remain in force throughout this week.

Whenever I look up towards Heaven, I desire and intend to rejoice with Thee in Thine infinite perfections; that Thou art what Thou art, supremely strong and wise and loving and just.

As often as I open or close my eyes, I desire and intend to approve and concur in all the holy actions which Thine Only-begotten Son, and all the Saints in Heaven and just on earth, have ever done, or shall ever hereafter do, to Thy glory, and desire to be held a partaker in them all.

As often as I draw my breath, I offer to Thee the Life and Passion and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the merits and sufferings of all the Saints, to Thine eternal glory, for the welfare and peace of all the whole world, and in satisfaction for the sins of all men.

Whenever I sigh, I intend to detest and abhor every sin, as well my own sins as those which have ever been committed from the beginning of the world against the honour of Thy Name. Would that the slight and worthless offering of my blood might be accepted in satisfaction for them! Lastly, as often as I move my hand or my foot, so often do I cast myself with entire resignation upon Thy most holy will, desiring that Thou wouldst dispose of me in time and in eternity, according to Thine adorable good pleasure.

And, lest this fivefold covenant should be in any way made void, I seal it with the seals of Thy five most Sacred Wounds, earnestly desiring that it may have its full force with Thee, even though in any one of these actions it be not actually present to my mind.

VINTAGE SEPIA SACRED HEART

Come Now the Hour

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Robed in splendor,
Wrapped in might,
Clothed in a mantle of power,
Holy Majesty, now come Your Hour.

Mercy inclining
Embracing spirit poor,
Abundance kissing
With generous grace.

Common ground
Of God’s own Holiness,
Love’s living bridge
Spanning the breech.

All are called.
Please all come
To live the revelation
Of the Holy Son.

© Joann Nelander 2013
All rights reserved

Setting Sail

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Come Wind of the Spirit.
O Holiness, fill my sails
That we may traverse the oceans,
And laugh at the power of the seas.

Set my course
According to the plan of the Father,
Brought to fruition in the Son,
Who purifies the many waters.

©2013 Joann Nelander  All rights reserved

The Faithful St. Joseph – Foster-Father and Guardian

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From a sermon by Saint Bernadine of Siena, priest by Pope John Paul II
The faithful foster-father and guardian

There is a general rule concerning all special graces granted to any human being. Whenever the divine favor chooses someone to receive a special grace, or to accept a lofty vocation, God adorns the person chosen with all the gifts of the Spirit needed to fulfill the task at hand.

This general rule is especially verified in the case of Saint Joseph, the foster-father of our Lord and the husband of the Queen of our world, enthroned above the angels. He was chosen by the eternal Father as the trustworthy guardian and protector of his greatest treasures, namely, his divine Son and Mary, Joseph’s wife. He carried out this vocation with complete fidelity until at last God called him, saying: Good and faithful servant enter into the joy of your Lord.

What then is Joseph’s position in the whole Church of Christ? Is he not a man chosen and set apart? Through him and, yes, under him, Christ was fittingly and honorably introduced into the world. Holy Church in its entirety is indebted to the Virgin Mother because through her it was judged worthy to receive Christ. But after her we undoubtedly owe special gratitude and reverence to Saint Joseph.

In him the Old Testament finds its fitting close. He brought the noble line of patriarchs and prophets to its promised fulfillment. What the divine goodness had offered as a promise to them, he held in his arms.

Obviously, Christ does not now deny to Joseph that intimacy, reverence and very high honor which he gave him on earth, as a son to his father. Rather we must say that in heaven Christ completes and perfects all that he gave at Nazareth.

Now we can see how the last summoning words of the Lord appropriately apply to Saint Joseph: Enter into the joy of your Lord. In fact, although the joy of eternal happiness enters into the soul of a man, the Lord preferred to say to Joseph: Enter into joy. His intention was that the words should have a hidden spiritual meaning for us. They convey not only that this holy man possesses an inward joy, but also that it surrounds him and engulfs him like an infinite abyss.

Remember us, Saint Joseph, and plead for us to your foster-child. Ask your most holy bride, the Virgin Mary, to look kindly upon us, since she is the mother of him who with the Father and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns eternally. Amen.