Deliver me from me

DELIVER ME FROM ME

Many nights I have stayed awake to pray,

Binding and loosing the wicked foe.

I have spoken in tongues of anger

Bellowed out in lofty language,

To bid the enemy hold his peace,

And let my life and spirit be.

But now when I sit and meditate

I realize who the greatest foe is:

It is me, not my enemies, who refused to play my part.

It is me, who let your hand go in the dark,

And rushed like a fool after the devil’s buffet.

It is me, who signed the devil's pact,

And befriended the world for gain.

I am the villain of my story

And the one who needs your help…

So when I pray to you today

It is with all my heart that I ask

Deliver me from myself.

For if you deliver me from myself,

I am delivered from the world!

MID OCTOBER MEDITATION

Where are our dreams headed in October?

Where do we begin the unmelodying

Of rhythms of pains in the heart?

“Start with letting go…

Of urges for more, more and more

Of nothings. Masked as necessities.

And of cravings

For banality and unrhyming rhymes

Of things one should never be.

Curdle your heart with a new song

Tame your wild roams and call on your heart.

“Return home” to sacred devotions;

To the melody of a contented spirit.

With his truth,

Clear the cobwebs of doubts ,

Banish anxiety,

And remember

He did not just give the mouth-watering soup and the yummy meal

But the all too needed appetite to wash it down.

Taming the Tongue

The unrestrained volubility and wantonness of speech is the occasion of numberless evils and vexations in life.  It begets resentment in him who is the subject of it, sows the seed of strife and dissension amongst others, and inflames little disgusts and offences which if let alone would wear away of themselves: it is often of as bad effect upon the good name of others, as deep envy or malice: and to say the least of it in this respect, it destroys and perverts a certain equity of the utmost importance to society to be observed—namely, that praise and dispraise, a good or bad character, should always be bestowed according to desert.  The tongue used in such a licentious manner is like a sword in the hand of a madman; it is employed at random, it can scarce possibly do any good, and for the most part does a world of mischief; and implies not only great folly and a trifling spirit, but great viciousness of mind, great indifference to truth and falsity, and to the reputation, welfare, and good of others.  So much reason is there for what St. James says of the tongue, It is a fire, a world of iniquity, it defileth the whole body, setteth on fire the course of nature, and is itself set on fire of hell. This is the faculty or disposition which we are required to keep a guard upon: these are the vices and follies it runs into when not kept under due restraint.- Joseph Butler (1887)

To be alive and well is a gift that is often taken for granted. Earlier today, I had to teach in spite of the headache I was feeling; it was not banana pudding! How easy it is for our everyday activities to become serious hurdles in time of illness. Father, I thank you for good health, not taking your grace for granted.