Abba Lot went to see Abba Joseph and said to him, “Abba as far as I
can I say my little office, I fast a little, I pray and meditate, I live
in peace and as far as I can, I purify my thoughts. What else can I
do?” then the old man stood up and stretched his hands towards heaven.
His fingers became like ten lamps of fire and he said to him, “If you
will, you can become all flame.” -from the Desert Fathers
Dear Lord, help me to spread Thy fragrance everywhere I go.
Flood my soul with Thy spirit and life.
Penetrate and possess my whole being so utterly
that all my life may only be a radiance of Thine.
Shine through me, and be so in me that every soul I come in contact with
may feel Thy presence in my soul.
Let them look up and see no longer me but only Thee O Lord!
Stay with me, and then I shall begin to shine
as Thou shinest; so to shine as to be a light to others.
The light O Lord will be all from Thee;
none of it will be mine;
It will be Thou, shining on others through me.
Let me praise Thee in the way Thou dost love best,
by shining on those around me.
Let me preach Thee without preaching,
not by words but by my example,
by the catching force,
the sympathetic influence of what I do,
the evident fullness of the love my heart bears to Thee.
John Henry Cardinal Newman
Peace and goodness to you.
In the words of my five-year-old son,
"God is here.
All around."
