"Stay with me, Lord"

Prayer of St. Pio of Peitrelcina

Stay with me, Lord, for it is necessary to have You present so that I do not forget You. You know how easily I abandon You.

Stay with me, Lord, because I am weak and I need Your strength, that I may not fall so often.

Stay with me, Lord, for You are my life and without You, I am without meaning and hope.

Stay with me, Lord, for You are my light and without You, I am in darkness.

Stay with me, Lord, to show me Your will.

Stay with me, Lord, so that I can hear Your voice and follow You.

Stay with me, Lord, for I desire to love You ever more, and to be always in Your company.

Stay with me, Lord, if you wish me to be always faithful to You.

Stay with me, Lord, for as poor as my soul is, I wish it to be a place of consolation for You, a dwelling of Your love.

Stay with me, Jesus, for it is getting late; the days are coming to a close and life is passing. Death, judgement and enternity are drawing near. It is necessary to renew my strength, so that I will not stop along the way, and for that I need You. It is getting late and death approaches. I fear the darkness, the temptatoins, the dryness, the cross, the sorrows. O how i need You, my Jesus, in this exile!

Stay with me, Jesus, because in the darkness of this life, with all its dangers, I need You.

Help me to recognize You as Your disciples did at the Breaking of the Bread, so that the Eucharistic Communion be the light which disperses the darkness, the power whicih sustains me, the unique joy of my heart.

Stay with me, Lord, because at the hour of my death I want to be one with You, and if not by Communion, at least by Your grace and love.

Stay with me, Jesus. I do not ask for divine consolations beacuse I do not deserve them, but I only ask for the gift of Your Presence. Oh yes! I ask this of You!

Stay with me, Lord, for I seek You alone, Your Love, Your Grace, Your Will, Your Heart, Your Spirit, because I love You and I ask for no other reward but to love You more and more, with a strong and active love.

Grant that I may love You with all my heart while on earth, so that I can continue to love You perfectly throughtout all eternity, dear Jesus.

Amen!

This is a prayer that I found in my Bible years ago and it helps to bring things into focus espeacially in times of repentence like the upcoming Lenten season.
Enjoy, and God Bless,
Matt

Prayer of Manasseh

Lord Almighty, God of our ancestors,
God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,
God of their righteous descendants,
You created the universe and all the splendor that fills it.
The sea obeys your command and never overflows its bounds.
The power of your wonderful, glorious name
Keeps the ocean depths in their place.
When you show your power, all creation trembles.
Your glorious splendor is overwhelming,
And your anger is more than sinners can endure.
But the mercy you promise is also greater
Than we can understand or measure.
For you are the Lord Most High;
You are patient and show mercy and compassion.
You make our punishment easier to bear when we suffer for our sins.
O Lord, in your great goodness and mercy
You promise forgiveness and salvation
To those who repent of their sin against you.
You Lord are God of the righteous people.
Repentance was not necessary for Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,
For they did not sin against you.
But for sinners like me you have made repentance possible.
I have committed more sins than there are grains of sand along the seashore.
They are so many, Lord, they are so many.
I have done so much that is wrong that I am not worthy to turn my face toward heaven.
I am crushed beneath the weight of my sin;
I am bowed down by its heavy iron chain.
I can find no relief, for I have made you angry.
I have set up idols everywhere;
I have done what you hate.
But now I bow in deep humility, praying for your mercy.
I have sinned, Lord, I have sinned, I confess the wicked things I have done.
I beg you, Lord, I earnestly pray; forgive me, forgive me.
Do not destroy me because of my sins;
Do not stay angry with me forever
Or store up punishment for me.
Do not condemn me to the world of the dead,
For you, O Lord, forgive those who repent.
Show me all your mercy and kindness and save me,
Even though I do not deserve it.
Then I will go on praising you as long as I live.
All the heavenly powers sing your praises,
And your glory endures forever.
Amen.

"To deny our impulses is to deny the very thing that makes us human"
-- Mouse, The Matrix (1999)

This is truly a sad saying. I was watching the first Matrix movie and I heard this line and was taken aback. Our understanding of moral right and wrong and our rationality is what seperates man from beast. To give into our natural impulses would make us no more than merely animals, but we are of higher dignity than that of animals, for we are made in the image and likeness of God.

I felt that this image above was intirely appropriate for the quote, because the one who would have us believe such pschy-babble is the one often depicted living in the fire. To further refute the quotation above I offer the perfect human, the witness to all humanity to what being human really is, Jesus Christ. I wonder when he was on the cross if he was giving into his impulses, or was he just denying the very thing that made him human.

"Father, into your hands I commend my spirit"

The Gospel According to Luke 23:46

"Christianity is a condition of complete simplicity costing not less than everything."
-- T.S. Eliot

This is an aswer to my previous post, how do I become a saint? Well, here it is, give everything. That's all I've got for now, just ponder this and take it in, contemplate how and what you are giving, and even who are you giving to. And most especially are you giving ALL.

This is where I struggle, so pray for me and I promise I will pray for you, God bless and good luck.

Your's in Christ,

Matt Hudson, member of the body of Christ