A Prayer
Eternal God, Father of our spirit, enlighten us how to pray rightly unto Thee. We would waste no vain words and we desire no material benefits. But our hearts yearn and long for the knowledge of Thee, and for Thy peace. In the fulness of Thy mercies grant us this prayer and fill our hearts with Thy love to overflowing so that we may not love only those who love us, but those who do not even know what love is. May we ever be aware of our humble origin and of our weakness in the days gone by, so that our hearts may open themselves not only to the strong who give us joy, but also to the weak ones who give us pain. It is hard for us to do it, hard indeed but enable us, O Heavenly Father, to sincerely try it and not to weary in the attempt. The road is steep, and dark is the night of our journey; our knees do often falter and we cannot as yet catch a glimpse of our eternal home, but we know that, even in the obscurity of the night, Thou art near. Unto Thee, then, we commend ourselves, and pray Thee to awaken and deepen within us the consciousness of thy presence so that we may go on our way rejoicing, until that day when our labors shall be over and we shall awaken in thy likeness.
Whatever the test that rends the soul,
Whatever the grief, that floods thy sorrowing heart with tears,
Whatever thy spirit fears,
Let it all lift thee up,
To kiss the very cross that blights thy life,
For in the fulness of His grace
Thou shalt see Him face to face,
And after the darkness of the night
Thou shalt rejoice in His glorious light.