Opening Prayer
Like Israel of old, our spirits waver, O God! The more abundant the fruit on the sprawling vines of our lives, the more restless and empty our hearts become. The more prosperous we become, the less we deem to need You. We flirt with other energies and needs we have deified. Call us again, Lord. Send us forth with Your Spirit, Energy and Power to proclaim that Your reign is present already. Break open new fertile fields within and around us so that justice might be sown, disease dispelled, distance diminished, and wholeness accomplished. Let our success and prosperity not blind us to You, as our Source of Life.
On this day in 1897, it was decided to isolate you in the infirmary because of our accelerating illness.
St. Thérèse, this must have been a dark day for you. You must have known that God was drawing you closer to home. Help us to have faith amid the dark times of pain, disappointment and illness. Teach us to trust that your refining and embracing presence is still with us, even though we feel empty. Strengthen our faith, powerful Therese, to believe that in our frailty is God’s mercy and healing power.
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