Baruch 5:1-9, Ephesians 3:14-21, Luke 12:49-53

Baruch 5:1-9
1 Jerusalem, put off your garment of mourning and unhappiness, put on the splendor and glory of God forever.

2 Wrap yourself in the mantle of holiness that comes from God, put on your head the crown of glory of the Eternal One.

3 For God will show your splendor to every being under Heaven.

4 He will call your name forever, “Peace in Justice” and “Glory in the Fear of the Lord.”

5 Rise up, Jerusalem, stand on the heights. Look towards the East and see your children gathered together from the setting of the sun to its rising, by the voice of the Holy One, rejoicing because God has remembered them.

6 They left you on foot, taken away by the enemy. God will lead them back, carried gloriously like royal princes.

7 For God has resolved to bring low every high mountain and the everlasting hills, to fill up the valleys and level out the ground, in order that Israel may walk in safety under the Glory of God.

8 Even the forests and the fragrant trees will give shade to Israel at God’s command. 9 For God will lead Israel with joy by the light of his Glory, escorting them with his mercy and justice.

My Beloved, I thank You for all the wonderful promises You make in these verses and I claim each one for my own. Not only for me my Lord, but for each member of my family. I do believe that there is a time for Your visitation to each of us and at the appointed time, each will hear Your call and will be led triumphantly by You. As for me, I am called to be faithful in loving and praying for each one of them in season and out of season, whether I feel inclined to or not. May I be faithful as You Beloved are faithful.

Ephesians 3:14-21

14 And now I kneel in the presence of the Father 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth has received its name.

16 May he strengthen in you the inner self through his Spirit, according to the riches of his glory;

17 may Christ dwell in your hearts through faith;

may you be rooted and found­ed in love.

18 All of this so that you may understand with all the holy ones the width, the length, the height and the depth—in a word, 19 that you may know the love of Christ that surpasses all knowledge, that you may be filled and reach the fullness of God.

20 Glory to God who shows his power in us and can do much more than we could ask or imag­ine; 21 glory to him in the Church and in Christ Jesus through all generations for ever and ever. Amen.

Here is my prayer slightly adapted to suit my need:

"Father in heaven I fall on my knees before You, it is from You that every family in heaven and on earth receives its true name. I ask You God, from the wealth of Your glory to give me power through Your Holy Spirit to be strong in my inner self. I pray that You my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ might make Your home in my hearet through faith. I pray that I may have my roots and foundation in love, so that I together with all God's people may have the power to understand how broad and long, how high and deep, is Christ's love. Yes, may I come to know His love alhtough it can never be fully known and so be filled by the very nature of God.

To You O Holy Spirit, who my means of Your power working in me, is able to do so much more that I can ever ask for or even think of, and to God be the glory in the Church and in Christ Jesus for all time for ever and ever. Amen.

I have also written a poem on these verses.

Prayer for Today

Abba Father in heaven,
As I come in Your Presence today,
And fall on my knees before You,
Grant me this petition I pray.

From the wealth of Your glory in heaven,
Dear Father I ask that You give,
Me power through Your Holy Spirit,
To be strong as long as I live.

I ask not for strength in my body
But strength in my inner self.
And of You My Lord and My Savior,
I have a favour to ask of as well.

In faith I ask You Lord Jesus,
To make Your home in my heart,
Then will my roots and foundation
Be deeply embedded in love.

So I, along with Your people,
Have the power to understand,
The breadth, length, the height, the depth of,
The wonderful love of my Lord.

Yes, my Lord and my Saviour,
May I know and be filled with Your love,
A love that can never be fully known,
And so have the nature of God.

Eph 3:14-19

Myra D’souza
14.2.1998

Luke 12:49-53
49 I have come to bring fire upon the earth and how I wish it were already kindled; 50 but I have a baptism to undergo and what anguish I feel until it is over!
51 Do you think that I have come to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. 52 From now on, in one house five will be divided; three against two, and two against three. 53 They will be divided, father against son and son against father; mother against daughter and daughter against mother; mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law, and daugh­ter-in-law against her mother-in-law.”

Beloved, this Gospel passage is one that has been puzzled over long and hard by many and maybe misunderstood as well. You come with the fire of the Holy Spirit that burns the dross away and leaves only the pure gold behind. You came to lead the way home to the Father. That way led to the death of the body to teach us that we too must die to sin and to die literally for You if need be. You came to bring division, for many in the world hate You and refuse to accept Your teaching because they prefer to live their bloated, self-indulgent lifestyle. Your Way is the Way to the Father. Thank You for inviting me to walk the Way and thank You for the grace that makes it possible.It touched my heart then and continues to touch it now. It is a powerful revelation of the love of God and the nature of God in each of the Divine Persons and what this power does for us who are God's children. Like St. Paul I go down on my knees in gratitude and love to my awesome God. My Beloved, from the very first time that I read this passage in Ephesians I was so drawn to its beauty and promise that I made this prayer my own and I recite it daily.