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Session 7
The Way of Ignatius Loyola (Lent 2019)

Session 7

Music Info

Veni Creator Spiritus

Veni Creator Spiritus

By Teresa Brown

In Search of Peace | Devine Music (Used with permission)

Link to the artist's website

Script

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Stillness

We come into this time of prayer asking for the gift of stillness. Listen to all the sounds outside you and gradually let them fade out until you become aware of your own breathing and the sense of your body relaxing and becoming still.

Hand over any tension and anxiety to God for this time.

Reflection

In Eastern Orthodox icons of Jesus descending into Hell, he is depicted standing on the gates of hell, which he has burst open and flattened. He tramples on a collection of locks, chains and keys as he pulls Adam and Eve out from the darkness of death into new life.

The chains symbolize our captivity in toxic and death-dealing ways of being. We easily bind ourselves in attitudes and patterns of thought and behaviour that are deadly to us, convincing ourselves that there is no way out.

Salvation is not an exercise in self-help. Only the love and grace of Jesus can save us from ourselves. Jesus is first and foremost a liberator who reaches into the tombs we build for ourselves to pull us out, but this is a lifelong process.

You may like to look at one of these icons following the link on the Pray As You Go website. Or you can listen to these words of Scripture from the gospel of John:

Reading: John 15:9-17

Conversation

It is learning to trust in the love Jesus has for us that frees us from all that imprisons us. Only then can we truly live our lives in God’s service. Ignatius tells us that humility is the key to knowing the grace of God in our lives. We experience grace as God’s gift to us, not as something we have earned. The heart of humility is gratitude, not self-hatred. Recognizing all our gifts and talents as God’s gift to us for the world leads us to offer all that we have and are for God’s service.

Think of the gifts and talents that you have. What are you most grateful for?

Think of them as given to you for the spreading of the kingdom preached by Jesus. Can you hear God’s invitation to you to spend your life for the kingdom? Perhaps desires or praise comes to your mind. Speak your mind and heart to God as we end this prayer time.