Tune Our Minds

                “My Lord, my God, You are ultimate Wisdom and Truth. All our questions, our thoughts, our desires begin with You. How is it that we eventually turn away from You, first in thoughts and then in actions? You constantly call to us, to bring us back. By giving us free will and an intelligent, inquisitive mind, You have given us the gift to ponder and meditate. If only we were better able to control and focus this powerful tool You graciously gave us.

“Sometimes, I think our minds are like a high powered race car in the hands of a new teenage driver. All this power, yet we haven’t a clue how to control it, use it, or to get the most out of it. Our minds can run out of control on windy roads, race too fast on straightaways, and sometimes blow up due to improper maintenance.

“Oh Lord, teach us how to use this special gift You gave only to us out of all Your creations. Teach us to fill our minds with Your pure and holy Wisdom. Let us not pollute our minds with things of the world – cheap glimpses and twisted manifestations of Your original teaching. May we hunger for Your Word, the only true substance that can nourish our minds and make them work properly. May our thoughts remain on Your Word, tuned in to how You want us to live. When our minds are in tune to Your Word, then our thoughts and actions race forward on the track You built for us. This track ultimately leads to Your Blessed Sacred Heart where we all long to be, yet we often “think” ourselves out of tune and then falter and stall on the road to You.

“Thank You for choosing us to receive Your gift of intelligent thinking. Help us stay in tune to Your Word and let us be powered by the love You inflame in our hearts. With the mind in tune and powered by the heart, we can race full speed to Your Blessed Sacred Heart. Dear Mary, Mother of God, will you wave the checkered flag and light the red and green lights to keep us on track?”

Seeing You in Those Around Us

                “Dear Lord, You place us here on earth separated from You whom we love more than anything else. We all earnestly desire to be with You again, yet we are here on earth for a while. You give us companions to be with while we are here and You are in every single one of those companions. How do we get so lost so fast? How can we be mean, unfair, unjust, spiteful and envious of those around us when all of us have You within us? How can we be indifferent, blind, disgusted or disappointed in those who suffer poverty, ill fortune and/or illness? They too have You within them.

“As we go through our lives here on earth, it is like we are shrouded in layers upon layers of the stuff that blinds us from Your presence in those around us. The layers may be pride, self-love, vain-glory, unhealed pain and hurt, festering emotional distress or disorder, unchecked ambition, relentless desire for wealth, power, glory – all these things place layer upon layer over our souls which distorts our vision and blurs our perception of Your holy presence. Lord, help us to remove each of these layers. We cannot do it alone but with Your help, we can shed each layer like removing layers of heavy clothing on a warm day. Each layer that is removed gives relief and provides freedom of movement and our vision slowly sharpens like when you are tested for glasses and each lense provides a clearer view.

“Oh Lord, may my vision be clear to see You in everyone, in all the companions You have given me on earth – not just my friends and family, but in all the people I meet. May I see You in the poor, in the angry, in the confused, in the ill, in the spiteful, in the powerful and in the weak. Help me see You and be filled with Your love and compassion for all. Then I won’t feel so separated from You. Then I will see that I am surrounded by You in all the people You have placed on earth. Then my stay here on earth won’t be so lonely and will be full of Your love.”