Daily Prayers for July 31
Ignatius of Loyola (1491 – 1556)
Ignatius was born to a noble Spanish family. As a young man, he joined the military, but a war injury ended his military career. While recuperating, Ignatius became bored and asked for novels about knights and battles. But all that could be found in the castle where he stayed were books on the life of Christ and the saints of the church. Legend has it that Ignatius read these stories in a competitive manner, imagining how he could beat the various saints at practicing the spiritual disciplines. He soon found that his thoughts on the saints left him with more peaceful and satisfied feelings than his daydreams about the noble life he had known before his injury. After his illness, Ignatius began practicing his competitive notions of rivaling the saints, and wrote about his experiences of Christian disciplines. His scribblings became the spiritual classic The Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius, used by Christians for centuries in the practice of discernment. He eventually founded the Society of -Jesus, an order still known widely for a commitment to foreign missions and religious education.
O Lord, let my soul rise up to meet you
as the day rises to meet the sun.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.
Come, let us sing to the Lord : let us shout for joy to the Rock of our salvation.
Song “Ubi Caritas”
Teach us to give : and not to count the cost.
Psalm 145:5 – 9
I will ponder the glorious splendor of your majesty : and all your marvelous works.
They shall speak of the might of your wondrous acts : and I will tell of your greatness.
They shall publish the remembrance of your great goodness : they shall sing of your righteous deeds.
The Lord is gracious and full of compassion : slow to anger and of great kindness.
The Lord is loving to everyone : and his compassion is over all his works.
Teach us to give : and not to count the cost.
1 Sam-uel 10:17 – 27 Acts 28:17 – 31
Teach us to give : and not to count the cost.
These are the words of Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Jesuits: “Consider that the blessed life we so long for consists in an intimate and true love of God, our Creator and Lord, which binds and obliges us all to a sincere love.”
Prayers for Others
Our Father
-Jesus, it is enough to tell others of your works of mercy, of your resurrection, of your imminent return. It is enough to praise you in the sanctuary, to kneel before you, to wait in silence for you. Lord, it is enough to be named as one of your children, to be bound in eternal love and freedom to give up our lives for you. Amen.
May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you : wherever he may send you;
may he guide you through the wilderness : protect you through the storm;
may he bring you home rejoicing : at the wonders he has shown you;
may he bring you home rejoicing : once again into our doors.
Becoming the Answer to Our Prayers: A Few Ideas
1. Begin a scholarship fund so that for every one of your own children you send to college, you can create a scholarship for an at-risk youth. Get to know their families and learn from each other.
2. Visit a worship ser-vice in which you will be a minority. Invite someone to a meal after the ser-vice.
3. Confess something you have done wrong to someone you have wronged or or offended and ask forgiveness.
4. Serve in a homeless shelter. For extra credit, go back to that shelter and eat or sleep there and allow yourself to be served.
5. Go through a local thrift store and drop dollar bills in the pockets of clothing in the store.
