The Society of Jesus
in Belize
Longing for the Light
Preparing to Pray
1. Take three deep breaths, allowing yourself to be fully present.
2. Speak to the Lord, telling him that you are dedicating the next fifteen minutes to be with Him.
3. Ask for the grace you desire:
I ask God to help me feel a longing for something more than the suffocating world of my selfishness and self-seeking: a longing for true freedom from the sins that hold me bound.
4. Consider the following points:
Hope is a dangerous thing… in a good way. We tend to become accustomed to our lives, both the good and the bad, because we have never thought that there might be anything more. But when we begin to suspect that we can live in such a way that we are not stuck in our patters of selfish behavior, then we begin to hope. God can do for us what we are unable to do for ourselves: God can set us free. Like Lazarus in the tomb, Christ wants to call us out of the darkness and back into the light. He wants to untie the knots that hold us bound, and to set us free from sin, which only makes us unhappy.
Prayer
Scripture:
John 11:1-44 "Untie him and let him go."
You might try using your imagination to see yourself as Lazarus bound up in the tomb. Imagine what it feels like to be wrapped up with gauze as you lay in a darkened tomb. What are the sins that bind you? Now, imagine Jesus calling your name and commanding you to come out. Imagine the stone rolling away and your bandages falling to the ground. Imagine what it is like to feel the sunlight and breeze once again. As you look out at Jesus, imagine the look on his face as he sees you, his beloved friend, now free from the bonds of death!
Review your prayer
Take a few minutes to reflect on and journal about the following:
Imagine those areas of your life, where you feel stuck in your sins. Call to mind the previous prayer periods in which you considered how it feels to be stuck there. Recalling all of that, what is it like to hear Jesus call you by name and say, “Come out!” What would that feel like?
... or else write down any moments of consolation or desolation you encountered in your prayer.
Speak with the Lord, as one friend to another, about whatever came up in your prayer.
End with an Our Father or a Hail Mary.