This prayer for members of the Armed Forces is taken from issues of Forward Day by Day that were published during WWII. It's a prayer we can use for those who serve today. Both of my brothers served in WWII.
Blessings and love, Fr. Jack. For those in the service of our country: Bless, O God, all who have left their homes to fight for the world's freedom, and those who risk their lives to serve them. Give them wisdom, courage, and fidelity to the highest. Let no ordeal separate them from the love of Christ. Sanctify the strong, uphold the weak, stretch forth thy gracious hand to the dying, in mercy receive the dead. And hasten the coming of godly peace, through the power of the Holy Spirit who cometh from thee, O Father, and thee, O Christ, world without end. Amen. (1945) This is from my 2006 Prayer Journal. It's a quotation from the famous Christian Apologist, C.S. Lewis in his book titled, "Mere Christianity." I love his humility and compassion for people like you and me. Blessings and love, Fr. Jack. "(A Christian ) does not think God will love us because we are good, but that God will make us good because he loves us; just as the roof of a greenhouse does not attract the sun because it is bright, but becomes bright because the sun shines on it." C.S. Lewis, British Christian Apologist, novelist and writer, lay theologian, 1898 - 1963. Also taught at Oxford and Cambridge Universities This quotation from Madeleine L'Engle from my 2006 prayer Journal is so true.
It is in the difficult times of our lives that it is so easy to turn away from or blame God for what happened to us. Remember God is always with us. Blessings and love, Fr. Jack. "It is when things go wrong, when the good things do not happen, when our prayers seem to have been lost, that God is most present. We do not need the sheltering wings when things go smoothly. We are closest to God in the darkness, stumbling along blindly." (Madeleine L’Engle, 1918 to 2007, fiction writer, Episcopalian) Friends: I believe it is God's nature to be loving, kind and gentle to us and others always. Sometimes we have a tough time believing this and are far too hard on ourselves. Maybe this article I saved in my 2016 Prayer Journal
will help you. Blessings and love, Fr. Jack. "Jesus died for the sins of Judas, the same for the sins of John. There is no sin so great that our Lord cannot love you - otherwise we would not be commanded to love our enemies. If you have been an enemy to God, it's okay. You are still loved. God will not turn you away for being unlovable." (Lane Morris Buchanan-Forward Day By Day-July 2016) |