The spiritual masters say that a person that does not spend time each day with themselves in thought and reflections is no person. In order to aid in that process we provide herewith for members and friends, prayers, reflections, thoughts and exercises for their devotional time. Read them slowly. Savor each word, ponder each thought. Apply them to your life. May you find blessing in their use. On God O God, I thank you for this Time of prayer, this precious Opportunity of realizing Your Presence, of laying before You My desires, my hopes, my gratitude. Of all blessed things this Realization of our presence is The most blessed. For how empty would my life Be if I did not have Your Presence, if I were to lose You Utterly in the maze of the Worldly life, if I did not Come back from time to time to Commune with You, to get The assurance of your existence and Your love. How good it is to know that you are With me in all my difficulties and troubles, To feel that in you I have a friend Whose help is sure, whose love is –Adapted from the West London Synagogue prayer book On work The Hebrew word for work and worship – avoda – are the same. What if we were to think of our daily work as a prayer to God and the Divine demand. Pray this prayer before the start of the work week. O God, be with me in the turmoil Of my daily life. Bless and hallow my Daily work. Let me do it for your sake And not for my own, as a task performed In Your service and not as means Of realizing only material aims. Let my work be consecrated in My sight as a way of approach To you, an opportunity for Ministering to my higher self, a bond Binding me in sympathy And friendship with my fellow Human beings. May I strive ever more Resolutely to enable my daily Work by integrity, by industry, By seriousness of purpose. Thus while I will reinforce the Healthy activities of humankind, May it help to fashion my Own character and make my Daily life fit for your scrutiny and Save me from apathy and Laziness. Whatever my hand finds to Do, let me do it with all my might. Open my eyes so that whatever My work may be – however humble – I may respect it and deem it honorable. Give me strength to do it and Wisdom to win its material fruits; Let me not labor in vain Nor let me bring forth trouble, turmoil, And disappointment. I dare not make my work my _____; There are still higher tasks and holier Aims whose call to my energies is But if it be that my rewards be Scanty, if my plans miscarry, if Failure follows my effort, then save Me from despair. Imbue me with hope and trust And acceptance, so that I may cast My burden on You in the sure conviction That You will uphold me. For You enable us to find good in Every vicissitude and come riches or Poverty, success or disappointment, Your Purposes ever make our good. –Adapted from the prayer book of the West London Synagogue On Prayer Remember when praying, no topic is “off limits”. God already knows everything that is happening in your heart, so you can talk to Him about everything. Pray for courage when you feel afraid. Request the strength to face the fear, as a step towards maturity, instead of leaving the fear unaddressed. When balancing your checkbook or paying your bills, ask for wisdom in managing your money. Just before exercising thank God for your health. Tend to react when you feel angry? Pray that you will develop the ability to stop, THINK and SEE the situation from the other person’s point of view before responding. –Joanne Redmond At times, suddenly inspiration and enthusiasm will come to a person during prayer. They will be able to pray with love and close deep connectedness to God. But then it disappears. Why? The Spirit came from above, in order to show him or her the path of connectedness in prayer but then it leaves them so that they will work themselves to reach this level of deep close connectedness. –Rabbi Shlomo of Rhadomsk The wish to pray is a prayer itself – God can ask no more than that of us. –George Bernanos Prayer does not change God, but changes the one who prays. –Soren Kierkegaard I pray that I might pray. –Rabbi Chaim of Sanz On Sleep Loving God, save me from evil Thoughts and bad dreams. Let my Bed be a place of wholeness and Peace. Help me sleep only The minimum necessary for the health of my body. As I go to sleep let it be with Thoughts of wisdom in my mind And feelings of joy. Let my soul Be joined in unity with all the holy Souls and ascend with them to You as I sleep. Help my soul to ascend to You In peace while I sleep and return In peace to my body when I wake up. Let me enjoy good and sweet sleep: The Sleep of life. Send me good, true, holy Dreams and save me from false, vain and Confused dreams. Let me lie down to rest In goodness and awaken in Your love. –adapted from Rabbi Nachman of Breslov On Gratitude O God, when I have food, Help me to remember the hungry; When I have work, Help me to remember the jobless; When I have a home, Help me to remember those who have no home at all; When I am without pain, Help me remember those who suffer. And remembering, Help me to destroy my complacency; Bestir my compassion, And be concerned enough to help; By word and deed, Those who cry out for what we take for granted. –Samuel F. Pugh |