More Great Reading

I had fun recommending those books last week. So I thought I might do it again. Normally during the summer, I am constantly reading something—as are many of you. I typically use that time to catch up on reading that I have wanted to do but just haven’t had the time. This summer has been a little different. I have really only read one novel so far (Slaughterhouse-Five).

And instead of reading several books on spirituality or theology, this summer I have been reading basically only two—but them much more thoroughly. They are books of written prayer. I read a few prayers each day, and I meditate on them. Contemplate them. Pray them.

I cannot tell you how glad I am that I have been doing this. It has helped me to clarify the role prayer plays in my life. It has helped me see new ways to pray. It has allowed me to see what a mature Christian’s prayer life could look like.

The two books are: Prayers by Michel Quoist, and Awed to Heaven, Rooted in Earth: Prayers of Walter Brueggemann by Brueggemann himself. All I can say is that either one (or both) is worth buying this moment. I assure you that you will be glad you did.

I will include in the next two posts a prayer from each Christian: Quoist a French Catholic priest from the 19th century, and Brueggemann an American Old Testament scholar who is still prolific to this day. May this have the same impact on you as it did me.

Thank You by Michel Quoist:
We must know how to say, “Thank You.” Our days are filled with the gifts the Lord showers on us. If we were in the habit of taking stock of them, at night we should be like a “queen for a day,” dazzled and happy with so many blessings. We should then be grateful to God, secure because he gives us everything, joyful because we know that every day he will renew his gifts.

Everything is a gift from God, even the smallest things, and it’s the sum of these gifts that makes a life beautiful or sad, depending on how we use them.

“All good giving and every perfect gift comes from above, from the Father of the lights of heaven. With him there is no variation, no play of passing shadows.” (James I, 17)

Thank you, Lord, thank you.
Thank you for all the gifts you have given me today,
Thank you for all I have seen, heard, received.
Thank you for the water that woke me up, the soap that smells good, the toothpaste that refreshes.
Thank you for the clothes that protect me, for their color and their cut.
Thank you for the newspaper so faithfully there, for the comics (my morning smile), for the report of useful meetings, for justice done and big games won.
Thank you for the street-cleaning truck and the men who run it, for their morning shouts and all the early noises.
Thank you for my work, my tools, my efforts.
Thank you for the metal in my hands, for the whine of the steel biting into it, for the satisfied look of the supervisor and the load of finished pieces.
Thank you for Jim who lent me his file, for Danny who gave me a cigarette, for Charlie who held the door for me.
Thank you for the welcoming street that led me there, for the shop windows, for the cars, for the passers-by, for all the life that flowed swiftly between the windowed walls of the houses.

Thank you for the food that sustained me, for the glass of beer that refreshed me.
Thank you for the car that meekly took me where I wanted to be, for the gas that made it go, for the wind that caressed my face and for the trees that nodded to me on the way.

Thank you for the boy I watched playing on the sidewalk opposite,
Thank you for his roller-skates and for his comical face when he fell.

Thank you for the morning greetings I received, and for all the smiles.
Thank you for the mother who welcomes me at home, for her tactful affection, for her silent presence.
Thank you for the roof that shelters me, for the lamp that lights me, for the radio that plays, for the news, for music and singing.
Thank you for the bunch of flowers, so pretty on my table.

Thank you for the tranquil night.
Thank you for the stars.
Thank you for the silence.

Thank you for the time you have given me.
Thank you for life.
Thank you for grace.

Thank you for being there, Lord.
Thank you for listening to me, for taking me serioulsy, for gathering my gifts in your hands to offer them to your Father.
Thank you, Lord,
Thank you.