Heal me Jesus
from my worldly attachments
my desires for money
honor
power
that distract me from love
draw me into your embrace
Almighty Son of God
for yours is the treasure
the glory
the kindom
I wish to seek
~Robert Van Valkenburgh
Reflection:
What worldly attachments or desires most compete with my freedom to love God and others fully?
Scripture:
“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and decay destroy… But store up treasures in heaven.”
— Matthew 6:19–20
Christ on the cross
does not call us to passivity
any more than He calls us to fight
or to run away
Christ on the cross
calls us to love
to forgive
to pray for God’s mercy
even for those who hurt us
abuse us
reject us
abandon or betray us
for those who would take our lives
Christ on the cross
calls us to stand up for love
to lay down our lives for love
to never give up on love
~Robert Van Valkenburgh
Reflection:
Where in my life is Christ inviting me to respond to suffering not with withdrawal or retaliation, but with courageous, forgiving love?
Scripture:
“Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.”
—Luke 23:34 (NRSV)
“We are to become vessels of God’s compassionate love for others.”
~Saint Claire of Assisi
Reflection:
In what ways is God inviting me to be emptied of self so that His compassionate love may flow more freely through me to others?
Scripture:
“But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.”
— 2 Corinthians 4:7
Is it enough
to say I love Christ
without loving my brothers
my sisters
without loving a stranger
the poor
the needy
or my enemy
is it enough to take the gift
of salvation
and not to share it
with the least of these
with those who are sick
and who live in darkness
is it enough to receive the light
and then to hide it
to hoarde it
to keep it for my own
or must I be as Christ
in all things
in all ways
for all people
according to his grace and mercy
upon the cross
of self-sacrificial love
~Robert Van Valkenburgh
Reflection:
In what practical way can I share Christ’s light with someone who may feel overlooked or forgotten this week?
Scripture:
“Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.” — Matthew 25:40
“If you feel distant from God, guess who’s moved away from whom!”
~Richard Leonard
Reflection:
Where in my life have I drifted from God, and what one step can I take today to turn back toward Him?
Scripture:
“Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.” — James 4:8
Lord when I try to please
anyone but you
I fall short of your glory
yours alone
is the love for which
my heart longs
you are the living water
to quench
my perpetual thirst
the bread of life
to satisfy
the hunger in my soul
anything less
is vanity
as it is written
man cannot serve
two masters
my life belongs to you
~Robert Van Valkenburgh
Reflection:
Where in your life do you still try to please others instead of seeking your identity and fulfillment in God alone?
Scripture:
“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other.” — Matthew 6:24
“Christianity is not primarily a philosophy or a system of ethics or a religious ideology. It’s a relationship to the unsettling person of Jesus Christ, the God-man.”
~Bishop Robert Baron
Build your faith
upon the rock
that never turns to sand
that does not wash away
nor crack
nor shift
build the kind of faith
that is not swayed
by desire’s strong winds
eroded
by sin’s crashing waves
nor shaken
by the tremors of suffering
build your faith
upon the Lord
~Robert Van Valkenburgh
Grappling With Divinity 