Devotional Thought of the Day:

Who will set a guard over my mouth, an effective seal on my lips, That I may not fail through them, and my tongue may not destroy me?e Lord, Father and Master of my life, do not abandon me to their designs, do not let me fall because of them!

2 Who will apply the lash to my thoughts, and to my mind the rod of discipline, That my failings may not be spared or the sins of my heart overlooked? 3 Otherwise my failings may increase, and my sins be multiplied; and I fall before my adversaries, and my enemy rejoice over me?
4 Lord, Father and God of my life, do not give me haughty eyes; 5 remove evil desire from my heart. 6 Let neither gluttony nor lust overcome me; do not give me up to shameless desires.  Sirach 22:27- 23:6  NAB-RE

11 *Give us today our daily bread; 12 and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors;
13 and do not subject us to the final test, but deliver us from the evil one.  Matthew 6:11-13 NAB-RE.

309      Doubts assail you, temptations, with that gloss of elegance about them. I love to hear you say how this shows that the devil considers you his enemy, and that God’s grace will never leave you unprotected. Keep up the struggle!

As I am working through the book of Sirach, I am amazed at the prayer life on display, and the hope of repentance he depended upon God granting him.. The prayer in the first quote above is an example.  It is a prayer that would answer James’ discourse on the tongue, and Paul’s plea for a rescuee from this body of death in Romans.  It is the plea for the fruit of the Spirit to develop in our hearts and minds.And it echoes the prayer Christ has taught us, in asking God to help us avoid temptation, to be delivered from the evil one, and that hard challenge of not striking back against those who’ve sinned us again, but forgiving them.

We would all say that we long for such a Christlikeness to be developed in our lives. I think that most of us would eagerly respond to that call, and the desire to live life walking with Jesus, and imitating Him.

But will we invite God to make it happen?  Will we let Him set a guard over our mouths, will we let him discipline our tongue, mind, heart, eyes and desires?  Will we accept His chastening and rebuking, recognizing it as His love?  Will we make such a prayer our own, knowing the result of God’s law, the work of the Holy Spirit that we call sanctification?

Letting the Holy Spirit put to death the deeds of our body will not be easy, I cannot promise it will be painless. (Romans 8:13)  Matter of fact, I am sure it will hurt, as war wages over our soul, and our sin which was nailed to the cross tries to keep us ensnared.  (Hebrews 1:1-3)

But our hope is found in looking to Christ, in trusting the Holy Spirit to work within us, to comfort us, to comfort and quiet our souls, and to help us understand the work of Christ, which is our promise of sharing in the glory of Christ.  

So, join with me in prayer, and ask God to transform us, that we would reflect the light of Christ to others who need to be healed and freed. And know this, through it all, your Master is with you!!!

(1)  Escriva, Josemaria. The Forge (Kindle Locations 1247-1250). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.