Welcome to our contemplation today.
Take a deep breath and relax into the practice.
Become aware of the time you will spend today with the Lord in prayer.
And contemplation.
Take a moment to sit up straight on a comfortable chair.
Or in a position that feels comfortable on the ground.
Sit up straight,
But not overly erect.
Allow your shoulders to soften.
Set an intention to remain in this position during this contemplation.
Even if you feel tired or distracted.
But remember,
If there is any extreme discomfort,
Please adjust yourself.
You may remember that the heart of Jesus,
From which blood and water came out,
Is central to Christian tradition and spirituality.
We may keep in mind that the heart symbolizes God's unconditional and all-inclusive love for all of us.
We are also called to live in His heart,
Full of joy,
Love,
And hope.
Gently close your eyes.
Breathe slowly.
And deeply.
Breathe one.
Three times.
Now imagine that you feel and see Jesus in front of you.
Jesus is sitting in front of you,
Looking at you with love.
His loving gaze is on you.
Let your mind rest on the feeling of being loved by Jesus.
Let us pray.
Lord,
Give me the grace to be contemplative in action,
To spend time with you and with your people.
Lord,
Give me the grace to be contemplative in action,
To spend time with you.
And with your people.
You you you Lord,
Give me the grace to be contemplative in action,
To spend time with you and with your people.
You you you Now,
Let us hear a reading from the Gospel of Saint Mark.
The apostles gathered around Jesus and reported to him all they had done and taught.
Then,
Because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat,
He said to them,
Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.
So they went away by themselves in a boat to a solitary place.
But many of them who saw them leaving recognized them.
And ran on foot from all the towns and got there ahead of them.
When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd,
He had compassion on them,
Because they were like sheep without a shepherd.
So he began teaching them many things.
Ponder on these words for some moments.
Let them come into your heart.
You you Now let us pause for reflection.
Sometimes we make a distinction between being a mystic and being an activist,
But the Christian spirituality is based on silence,
Solitude,
And prayer,
And it reaches out to others in action and in deeds.
Christian spirituality is one when we are all called to be mystics and contemplatives in both prayer and committed action.
All our actions emerge from our experience of the love of God,
You Let us now repeat the phrase,
Silence,
Prayer,
And action,
Until our heart reaches out to the needy and unloved people.
We realize that God became a human being to redeem all of us by his presence and contemplation and action.
Now breathe in.
And breathe out.
Think of the sacred heart of Jesus.
Ask for Jesus to teach you silence,
Prayer,
And action.
Jesus,
Teach me to be like you.
Teach my heart to reach out to the needy.
Teach me a life of contemplation and action.
Keep breathing in.
And breathing out.
You silence.
Prayer.
And action.
You Think of the sacred heart of Jesus.
You you Jesus,
Teach my heart to be silent.
Teach my heart to pray.
Teach my heart to act.
Silence.
Prayer.
And action.
Keep breathing in.
And breathing out.
Silence.
And action.
Jesus,
Teach my heart to be silent.
Teach my heart to pray.
Teach my heart to act.
Silence.
Prayer.
And action.
Silence.
And action.
Now let us surrender to God.
Remind yourself that God unconditionally forgives and accepts who you are.
Now make an offering of yourself to the Lord and request Jesus to accept you.
Ask Jesus to come and live in your heart,
Then give yourself to Him to live in His heart.
Jesus,
Come and live in my heart.
Jesus,
I give myself to live in your heart.
Jesus.
Come and live in my heart.
Jesus,
I give myself to live in your heart.
Jesus.
Come and live in my heart.
Jesus.
I give myself to live in your heart.
Thank you,
Jesus,
For the graces you have given me in this contemplation today.
Let us end with the Lord's Prayer.
Our Father,
Who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy name.
Thy kingdom come,
Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation.
But deliver us from evil.
Now get up slowly,
Remain in the mood of prayer for some more minutes,
And write down the main experiences,
Insights,
Or questions in your notebook.
