Power prayer

I have this picture of a laughing Christ tucked inside my cell phone holder such that when I pull out my phone, I see the face of Christ glowing back at me and  it helps me get back on track especially when I’m in a stressful moment.

At the back of the photo card is a beautiful prayer named “Learning Christ”. If you’re not familiar with this Catholic prayer, here it is:

Teach me, my Lord, to be sweet

and gentle in all the events of life:

in disappointments,

in the thoughtfulness of others,

in the insincerity of those I trusted,

in the unfaithfulness of those

on whom I relied.

Let me put myself aside, to think

of the happiness of others,

to hide my little pains and heartaches,

so that I may be the only one to suffer them.

Teach me to profit by the suffering

that comes across my path.

Let me so use it that it may mellow me,

not harden nor embitter me;

that it may make me patient,  not irritable,

that it may make me broad in my

forgiveness,  not narrow,

haughty and overbearing.

May no one be less good for having

come within my influence.

No one less pure, less noble

for having been a fellow-traveler

in our journey toward eternal life.

As I go my rounds from one

distraction to another, let me whisper,

from time to time, a word of love to You.

May our life be lived in the supernatural,

full of power for good, and strong

in its purpose of sanctity. Amen.

I like this prayer because it reminds me not to lean solely on my strong character to carry me through negative situations; that even if I see the weaknesses of others, I should learn to be sweet and gentle. The prayer challenges me spiritually to get out of my comfort zone and be selfless; to learn to think of the happiness of others even to the point of hiding my own pains. Blessed Mother Teresa immediately comes to my mind. I can’t imagine myself to be even near to who she was. But this prayer inspires me that I can “profit by the suffering” around me.

The prayer pinches my heart when it says that no one is less in stature even if I have more influence than them because we are all “fellow-travelers in our journey toward eternal life.” When the time comes that we come face to face with God, no one is richer or more famous than the other. Not even the so-called “preppers” who are preparing for the “end of the world” can be a step ahead than others to be saved. Friday, Dec. 21 was their predicted d-date. But since nothing happened, everyone is still in the same boat, prepper or not. We all come equal and the same in desiring one thing: to enter the pearly gates. And no amount of treasure, fame or power can guarantee the heavenly spot for us.

“Learning Christ” for me is a power prayer. It nudges us to be like Jesus. We were made to be like Him. And because Jesus is Power, we can be spiritually strong by His grace if we learn to apply what the prayer is telling us.

What’s going to help us stand by this prayer even in the most trying times is in the last two lines: “let me whisper, from time to time, a word of love to You. May our life be lived in the supernatural, full of power for good, and strong in its purpose of sanctity.”

The more we whisper “I love you, Lord” in our most sincere way, we can expect to be filled by God’s grace and our lives lived in the power of God. It’s like love equates power from God.

I hope you also find this power prayer as a valuable resource for you whatever your circumstances are. Christmas is 48 hours away. What better gift to give our Saviour Jesus Christ than to adopt the Christ-like Christian attitude described in this prayer.

Don’t think that if you have sinned greatly against God, you can’t change for the better. It is for the weak that Jesus came to this world. It is his love for us that is the best reason for saving us from our sins in this world.

So when you feel like giving up or hurt by the oppressions of others around you, breathe slowly, read this prayer and do what it says.

It is power. It is a saving grace. It speaks of how we learn more to be like Christ. It is a Christmas message of love for others—the same way God loves us so much that He gave His only Son to be born for our sake and for our salvation.

This Christmas season, remember to whisper “I love you” to Jesus and to ask God to help us learn more of Christ and be like Him.

A blessed Christmas to all!!!