A PRAYER IN A TIME OF LOCKDOWN

A Prayer in a Time of Lockdown

As we go further into the lockdown because of this dreadful Coronavirus, we continue to try and keep our resolutions to stay home and keep our loved one's safe. We also keep trying to do personal things like get fit and more healthier and my motto of sorts when trying to lose weight goes as follows: ‘A moment on the lips is a lifetime on the hips.’ It meant that an act that took just an instant could remain with you forever. I like to apply this phrase to the process of prayer. A prayer takes just a matter of seconds to utter, but its influence on our lives can be permanent. ‘A moment on our lips is a lifetime on our souls.’ A simple prayer can change us; can lead us on the path to healing ourselves and our world. So pray. Pray for peace, pray for healing, pray for a cure to the virus, pray for love, pray for mercy, pray for forgiveness, pray for advances in science, pray for the strength to eradicate poverty and disease, pray to overcome injustice, pray for resolve, pray for others, pray for acceptance, pray for our poor, abandoned and homeless, pray for yourself. Pray to God with all your heart and soul, and then gather up your might to meet the challenges that lie ahead and we all know at this present time in our wonderful county and country that we need that help and strength to make the lives of our children, our elderly and our loved ones brighter, so let's get doing it for our beautiful children and elderly parents and grandparents. Prayer is asking. Prayer is pleading. Prayer is praising. Prayer is loving. Prayer is healing. Prayer is merciful. Prayer is hoping. Prayer is forgiving. Prayer is thanksgiving. But the ultimate goal of prayer is personal intimacy with God. Millions of people pray every day for a variety of different reasons. Whether you’ve found yourself in need of a listening ear or you want to praise a recent triumph, prayer has the ability to help people feel more grounded as they communicate with a higher power.  All people of faith struggle at times to maintain a meaningful prayer life, a loss felt all the more keenly in times like ours of coronavirus, confusion, political turbulence, injustices of all sorts and global calamity. Prayer is not a passive activity. Prayer awakens us. Our eyes begin to notice beauty where we never noticed it before. Our hearts begin to feel compassion, forgiveness and mercy we never knew we had. Our priorities shift. As we talk to God, we receive the encouragement to live up to the potential inside us. Soon we start to see beyond ourselves into the world that is waiting for our help and is suffering from the fears and loss of life by the coronavirus. I believe God is listening. And I believe God answers us. God’s answer to our prayers may be very different from the answer we were or are searching for. God’s reply might come as the strength to fight on. It may come as the courage to face what we have feared. God’s answer may be the ability to accept what we have been denying. Or it may appear as hope in the face of despair. We are not alone. God is present in our lives. When we stop bargaining with God and start opening up our souls to God, our prayers suddenly start working. We can pray for strength and receive strength. Prayer is ultimately an experience, not a request. It is a sense of being connected, of being part of something larger than ourselves. It is an attempt to be in the presence of God. A story from my Nana Scully's prayer book might help explain.

How much does a Prayer weigh?

"Berela Dunne, a poorly dressed lady with a look of defeat on her face, walked into a grocery store. She approached the owner of the store in a most humble manner and asked if he would let her charge a few groceries. She softly explained that her husband was very ill and unable to work. They had seven children and they needed food. John Murphy, the grocer, scoffed at her and requested that she leave his store. Visualizing the family needs, she said: "Please, sir! I will bring you the money just as soon as I can." John told her he could not give her credit, as she did not have a charge account at his store. Standing beside the counter was a customer who overheard the conversation between the two. The customer walked forward and told the grocer that he would stand good for whatever she needed for her family. The grocer said in a very reluctant voice, "Do you have a grocery list?" Berela replied, "Yes sir." "Okay" he said, "put your grocery list on the scales and whatever your grocery list weighs, I will give you that amount in groceries." Berela hesitated a moment with a bowed head. Then she reached into her purse and took out a piece of paper and scribbled something on it. She then laid the piece of paper on the scale carefully with her head still bowed. The eyes of the grocer and the customer showed amazement when the scale went down and stayed down. The grocer, staring at the scales, turned slowly to the customer and said begrudgingly, "I can't believe it." The customer smiled and the grocer started putting the groceries on the other side of the scales. The scale did not balance so he continued to put more and more groceries on them until the scales would hold no more. The grocer stood there in utter disgust. Finally, he grabbed the piece of paper from the scales and looked at it with greater amazement. It was not a grocery list. It was instead a prayer which said: "Dear Lord, you know my needs and I am leaving this in your hands." The grocer gave her the groceries that he had gathered and stood in stunned silence. Berela thanked him and left the store. The customer handed a fifty euro note to the grocer and said, "It was worth every penny of it." It was sometime later that the grocer discovered the scales were broken; therefore, only God knows how much a prayer weighs!!"

A Beautiful New World Starts with You. 

Be the one who comforts, consoles and listens, and you will be comforted, consoled and heard. Be the one who loves and cares, and you will be loved and cared for?. Be the one who supports, helps and gives, and you will be supported and blessed. Be the one who encourages, and you will receive encouragement. Be the one who is kind and caring, and you will have kindness and care shown to you. Be the one who is considerate, and you will receive consideration. Be the one who nurtures and is good to nature and animals, and nature and animals in turn will be good to you. Be the one who shows admiration and you will be admired. Be the one who values truth and respect, and you will be respected. Be the one who takes action for the good of others, and you will move life forward. Be the one that does good things for Our World, and our world will help you to achieve good things. Be the one who shows mercy and compassion, and you will have mercy and compassion shown to you. Be the one who prays and lights candles for others, and you will be heard and have your prayers answered. Be the one who shows courage, and you will overcome your fears. Be the one who is honest in all your dealings in life, and your life will be one of truth. Be the one who lends a helping hand, and many hands will help you when in need. Be the one who lifts others up and higher, and your life will be rich. Be the one who brings and makes peace, and your world will have as its core peacefulness. Be the one who shows real forgiveness, and you will also be forgiven. Be the one filled with gratitude and thanksgiving, and there will be no end to the things for which you'll be thankful. Be the one who lives with joy, with hope, with courage, with love, with purpose, as your own light brightly shines. Be, in every moment the special and precious someone you are truly meant To Be.

A Prayer in a Time of Lockdown

"Please hold in tenderness and prayer the collective suffering of all our world at this very worrying time. We grieve for all those beautiful, precious, amazing lives lost and the many vulnerable lives now threatened. We fear for our loved ones, friends, neighbours and ourselves, facing an uncertain future. May we all be faithful to the behavioral and medical advice provided by many of those in charge and may God inspire us to be generous in our proactive care and solidarity and may I offer up this comforting blessing for you, the reader on your life's journey that you may see the light in the darkness during these challenging times of this lockdown because of the Coronavirus! May you feel the loving presence of those who hold you in their thoughts and prayers! May your spirit find what it needs to sustain you on this journey of life! May you discover your inner strength and face all difficulties with dignity and grace. May you be filled with comfort, love, strength, grace and a lasting sense of peace! May the light of your soul guide you. May the light of your soul bless the work that you do with the secret love and warmth of your heart. May you see in what you do the beauty of your own soul. May the sacredness of your work bring healing, light and renewal to those who work with you and to those who see and receive your work. May your work never weary you. May it release within you wellsprings of refreshment, inspiration and excitement. May you be present in what you do. May you never become lost in bland absences. May the day never burden. May dawn find you awake and alert, approaching your new day with dreams, possibilities and promises. May evening find you gracious and fulfilled. May you go into the night blessed, sheltered and protected. May your soul calm, console and renew you. May there always be work for your hands to do. May your purse always hold a coin or two; May the sun always shine on your windowpane; May a rainbow be certain to follow each rain; May the hand of a friend always be near you; May God fill your heart with gladness to cheer you. May the blessing of God's soft rain be on you, Falling gently on your head, refreshing your soul. With the sweetness of little flowers newly blooming. May the strength of the winds of Heaven bless you, Carrying the rain to wash your spirit clean. Sparkling after in the sunlight. May the blessing of God's earth be on you, And as you walk the roads, May you always have a kind word for those you meet. May joy and peace surround you, contentment latch your door, and happiness be with you now and bless you evermore! May the raindrops fall lightly on your brow. May the soft winds freshen your spirit. May the sunshine brighten your heart. May the burdens of the day rest lightly upon you, and may God enfold you in the mantle of His love now and always. I also pray for us all to have the power to be gentle, loving, kind and caring to one another and to ourselves; the strength to be forgiving and be forgiven; the patience to be understanding and compassionate and merciful; and the endurance to accept the consequences of holding to what we believe to be right and good and peaceful. May we put our trust in the power of good to overcome evil and the power of love to overcome hatred. Pray for the vision to see and the faith to believe in a world emancipated from viruses, illnesses, violence, hatred and war, a new world where fear shall no longer lead men and women to commit injustice, nor selfishness and unkindness to make them bring suffering to others. Help us to devote our whole life and thought and energy to the task of making peace and a better life for people and children in need in our world and country, praying always for the inspiration and the power to fulfill the destiny for which we and all people were created and that we will always look after the needy in our county, our country and in our world especially so many vulnerable and needy people in our country and world who are in serious need at this time of viruses and illnesses. Remember change starts within yourself and that you can't change others you can only change yourself so be a change for goodness and genuineness in your own life and always remember for evil to exist it takes good people to remain quiet. Much peace, love, protection and healing to everyone. Also some friends and family asked me to light a candle for them and some friends and family are in need of a prayer and candle lit especially any of you that are unwell or ill or in hospital or suffered an accident or a loss or some who are having worrying times with family and financial problems and for some who are lacking peace and mercy in their lives....for them and for all of us and especially for our amazing front line workers, whether they are a nurse, doctor, ambulance staff, medical staff, emergency first responder, garda, police person, army/defence force person, porter, kitchen staff, cleaner, undertaker, chaplain, priest and nun, front line medical office personnel, shop worker, journalist, media person, radio and TV people, volunteer, helpful neighbour, politician, counsellor or anyone who helped out in anyway during this Coronavirus Pandemic I am going to thank God for the great gifts of their talents as they have helped and continue to help and save so many people and families in need. Legends all. I offer up my prayers and candles and especially for peace, healing, a cure for the virus and real love in all our lives and in our families and in our world. Amen."