There is a very ancient rule, it is called the “rule of prayer”. Basically, it says that you believe in accord with what you pray. The rule extends itself in many directions as the word “believe” is plumbed. What we believe guides our behavior (not so much what we “think” or say). Let me share with all of you what a Missionary Servant prays, every Wednesday:
We thank you, Lord, for the gift of vocation, for calling us to be your servants and, in the spirit of Father Thomas Judge and St. Vincent de Paul, to be the servants of those to whom we minister. Help us to always cherish this gift by being zealous in proclaiming your kingdom. Give us the wisdom to recognize the needs and the gifts of those to whom we are sent. Especially the poor and abandoned. Help us to be simple in our life, chaste in our friendships, and humble in our response to those you send to guide us. Let our ministry, o Lord, be a light that attracts others to your service. May our lives express the joy of your love and mercy, and may they, in cooperation with your grace, draw others to join us as Missionary Servants of the Most Holy Trinity, members of a missionary family that calls God our Father, Jesus our brother, and the Holy Spirit our life itself. Blest is that holy and undivided Trinity, now and forever. Amen.
My hope is that each of us might catch ourselves off guard and reflect on our prayer life and contemplate what we pray to reveal what we believe in.
My hope is that we might continue to support one another in our prayer life, in what we truly believe, and in living/puƫng into practice our beliefs – even if it means swimming against the current.
Today, it might always have been, but it does seem rather urgent that today, we might recognize that we do need persons who will follow the Lord in discipleship and mission. This will not take place unless we are spiritual persons who daringly cultivate the life of prayer.
Father Francisco Gómez, S.T