“My sheep know my voice; I know them and they follow me… The father and I are one.”

This will be a powerful week to reflect upon Jesus as our guide and gatekeeper.

Who among us hasn’t felt threatened or fearful or lost at one time or another? To the degree we have any of that in our hearts this week, we can bring it all to the Lord. The words of the beautiful song by Marty Haugen come to mind: “Shepherd me, O God, beyond my wants, beyond my fears, from death into life.” Beyond what we want and what we fear is where we all can ask to be guided, cared for. The intimacy of knowledge is a wonderful grace to ask for each day, as well. Lord, I want to enjoy how you know me through and through, so much more than I know myself – even what I don’t admit, acknowledge or accept in myself. You know and love me. O Lord, how I desire to know you. Show yourself to me. Let me recognize your voice, your urgings, your comfort and your call.

We can ask for graces about the areas of darkness we are going to have to walk through, engage in and wrestle with each day this week. We can ask to be brought to the Father by Jesus. We can confidently ask that we might be able to do what Jesus does – in the very places we find ourselves this week.

Imagine how helped we will be this week to wake each morning and just have these kind of prayers on our lips. As we focus on them throughout each day, we will be doing two things: Letting these desires deepen in our hearts in the background of our consciousness, and we will let them interact and transform the options before us and the choices we make. We will be able to feel how good this feels, how it lightens our spirits and how it helps us end each day feeling a gifted intimacy with our Lord.

Each night we can look back over the day with gratitude and a renewed sense of oneness with our God. Have a blessed week.

Submitted by Sue McDonald