Friday, March 27, 2020, Reflection by Donna Ashworth
History will remember when the world stopped and the flights stayed on the ground, and the cars parked in the street, and the trains didn’t run.History will remember when the schools closed and the children stayed indoors, and the medical staff walked towards the fire, and they didn’t run.
History will remember when the people sang on their balconies, in isolation.But so very much together in courage and song.History will remember when the people fought for their old and their weak, protected the vulnerable – by doing nothing at all.
History will remember when the virus left and the houses opened, and the people came out – and hugged and kissed and started again – Kinder than before.
Prayer for Thursday, March 26, 2020
We thank Vanessa Early ’21 for composing today’s prayer:
O God, we often take our lives for granted, even the simplest things. With all the terrible things going on in the world, our eyes are fully open to be grateful for everything we have, because it can be taken away from us in seconds.
Thank you for the fresh water I have to drink, thank you for the food I have to eat, thank you for my beautiful family and friends, thank you for providing a roof over my head ,and thank you for never abandoning me God through all these rough times.
Guide us out of the dark with your everlasting Light. During this horrible time of illness, we pray for those who are struggling and suffering in life.
We turn and lean on You that You will pick us up in Your arms. Please give us strength to endure anything coming our way.
I love you God, please continue to watch over and protect me always.
Amen
Prayer for Wednesday March 25, 2020, The Annunciation of Mary
O Mary, Blessed Mother of God, when the angel greeted you, you were surprised and fearful; yet in wonder, you listened and opened your heart.
Your “Yes” led to the salvation of the world! After your Yes, you journeyed along a rugged path to “Visit” with your cousin Elizabeth.TOGETHER, you shared and explored God’s working in you, and you gave each other Strength, Hope and Joy.
Hear our prayer today, give US strength in our unknowing and our fear with this virus. We pray from hearts that love and are loved, but are also weak. Give us YOUR understanding, and yourTrust in God.
Dear Lady, OUR Mother be with us today.
Amen.
Prayer for Tuesday, March 24, 2020
Our prayer today is from St. Oscar Romero,
Archbishop in El Salvador, who was martyred on this day in 1980.
He gave his life for the “Liberation” of the poor in his country.
As members of the NDA community, we strive to be liberated, too,
to become agents of change in ourselves and in OUR society.
Let us take a little time today to read about this simple yet strong man of God.
I share his words as our prayer today. May they bless you.
“It helps, now and then, to step back and take a long view.
The kingdom is not only beyond our efforts, it is even beyond our vision. We accomplish in our lifetime only a tiny fraction of the magnificent enterprise that is God's work.
Nothing we do is complete, which is a way of saying that the kingdom always lies beyond us. No statement says all that could be said. No prayer fully expresses our faith. No confession brings perfection. No pastoral visit brings wholeness. No program accomplishes the church's mission. No set of goals and objectives includes everything.
This is what we are about: We plant the seeds that one day will grow. We water seeds already planted, knowing that they hold future promise. We lay foundations that will need further development. We provide yeast that produces far beyond our capabilities. We cannot do everything, and there is a sense of liberation in realizing that. This enables us to do something, and to do it very well.
It may be incomplete, but it is a beginning, a step along the way, an opportunity for the Lord's grace to enter and do the rest.
We may never see the end results, but that is the difference between the master builder and the worker.
We are workers, not master builders; ministers, not messiahs.
We are prophets of a future not our own. Amen.”
May the Strong Spirit of this courageous Saint be with us today.
Prayer for Monday, March 23, 2020
Come, O Holy Spirit, and let us know Your presence as we enter this new week.
Give us hope for relief from this virus. Give us gratitude for all those who are working to relieve the ill and depressed.
Give us generosity with one another showing patience and sisterly and brotherly love.
We are Your children seeking to live as Your loving family.
With the courage and Compassion of Mary and St. Marguerite, we pray,
Amen.