Orthodox prayer for the new day

O Lord, grant me to greet the coming day in peace.
Help me in all things to rely upon Your holy will.
In every hour of the day reveal Your will to me.
Bless my dealings with all who surround me.
Teach me to treat all that comes to me with peace of soul 
and with firm conviction that Your will governs all.
Grant me strength in unforeseen events. 
Let me not forget that all are sent by You.
Teach me to act lovingly, firmly, and wisely, 
without embittering or embarrassing others.
Grant me strength to bear the fatigues of the coming day 
with all that it shall bring.
Direct my will. Teach me to pray. Amen
- An Orthodox prayer


 Image courtesy of Photokanok / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Richard Rohr - butterfly

You do not catch a butterfly by chasing it: 

you sit still and it alights on your shoulder. 

Then it chooses you. 

That is true happiness. 

- Richard Rohr

 Image "Butterfly On Flower" courtesy of Patou /FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Native American prayer

Thus weave for us

a garment of brightness

That we may walk fittingly

where grass is green,

O our mother the earth,

O our father the sky.

- Native American prayer

Image"The Flow" courtesy of CNaene /FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Celtic prayer

I am bending my knee

In the eye of the Father who created me,

In the eye of the Son who purchased me,

In the eye of the Spirit who cleansed me,

In friendship and affection.

Through Thine own Anointed One, O God,

Bestow upon us fullness in our need.

Love towards God,

The affection of God,

The smile of God,

The wisdom of God,

The grace of God,

The fear of God,

And the will of God

To do on the world of the Three,

As angels and saints

Do in heaven:

Each shade and light,

Each day and night,

Each time in kindness,

Give Thou us Thy Spirit.

- Celtic prayer

 Image "Eye"  courtesy of  graur codrin /FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Celtic blessing

May the blessing of light be on you, light without and light within.
May the blessed sunlight shine upon you and warm your heart till it glows,
Like a great peat fire, so that the stranger may come
and warm himself at it, as well as the friend.
And may the light shine out of the eyes of you,
like a candle set in the windows of a house,
Bidding the wanderer to come in out of the storm.
And may the blessing of the rain be on you - the soft sweet rain.
May it fall upon your spirit so that all the little flowers may spring up,
And shed their sweetness on the air.
And may the blessing of the great rains be on you,
that they beat upon your spirit and wash it fair and clean,
and leave there many a shining pool, and sometimes a star.
And may the blessing of the earth be on you - the great round earth;
May you ever have a kindly greeting for people you pass
as you are going along the roads.
And now may the Lord bless you, and bless you kindly.
- Traditional Celtic blessing

Image courtesy of digitalart / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Prayer for spring (celtic)

A sleeping world emerges to new possibilities

Weakening winter’s icy grip And birdsong and bleating lamb

Announce to all the promise

That in due season

Creation bursts into life

And whilst leaves that fell in winter

Lie upon the ground

Soon to feed the earth

In nature’s wondrous cycle

Of death and rebirth

Within the tree is a stirring of new growth.

- Celtic prayer for spring (Fr. Peter Preble)

Image courtesy of graur razvan ionut / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Apache blessing

May the sun

bring you new energy by day.

May the moon

softly restore you by night.

May the rain

wash away your worries.

May the breeze

blow new strength into your being.

May you walk gently through the world

and know its beauty all the days of your life.

- Apache blessing

Image courtesy of Vichaya Kiatying-Angsulee / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Brother Roger of Taizé

Christ, Saviour of all life, 

you come to us always. 

Welcoming you 

in the peace of our nights, 

in the silence of our days, 

in the beauty of creation, 

in the hours of great combat within, 

welcoming you is knowing 

that you will be with us 

in every situation, 

always. Amen.

- Brother Roger of Taizé

Image courtesy of Vlado / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Humour - G K Chesterton and Karl Barth

“It is the test of a good religion 

whether you can joke about it." 

G.K. Chesterton


And on the same theme:


“Laughter is the closest thing

 to the grace of God.” - (Karl Barth)

Image "Clown" courtesy of  Salvatore Vuono / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Lebanese Blessing

May love be the gardener of your years 

bringing forth from your grounding in God

a harvest of wholeness and peace,

a bounty of courage and compassion.

May your soul tower with the strength of cedars;

your heart pound with the power of the sea.

May joy rise in you like the mountains

and may it be a blessing you share with those you love,

who this day make merry

that is your the great love of God

has found a home on earth.

- Lebanese blessing

Image courtesy of twobee/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Philip Yancey wisdom

"Christians get very angry

 toward other Christians 

who sin differently than they do." 

~ Philip Yancey


 Image "Modern Cross On The Sanctuary Of Fatima" courtesy of  by artur84 /FreeDigitalPhotos.net

A Celtic liturgy

I believe, O God of all gods,

That Thou art the eternal Father of life;

I believe, O God of all gods,

That Thou art the eternal Father of love.

I believe, O God of all gods,

That Thou art the eternal Father of the saints;

I believe, O God of all gods,

That Thou art the eternal Father of each one.

I believe, O God of all gods,

That Thou art the eternal Father of all humanity;

I believe, O God of all gods,

That Thou art the eternal Father of the world.

I believe, O Lord and God of the peoples,

That Thou art the creator of the high heavens,

That Thou art the creator of the skies above,

That Thou art the creator of the oceans below.

I believe, O Lord and God of the peoples,

That Thou art He Who created my soul

and set its warp.

Who created my body from dust and from ashes,

Who gave to my body breath,

and to my soul its possession.

Father, bless to me my body,

Father, bless to me my soul,

Father, bless to me my life,

Father, bless to me my belief.

Father eternal and Lord of the peoples,

I believe that Thou hast remedied my soul in the Spirit

of healing,

That Thou gavest Thy loved Son in covenant for me,

That Thou hast purchased my soul with the precious blood

of Thy Son.

Father eternal and Lord of life,

I believe that Thou didst pour on me the Spirit of grace

at the bestowal of baptism.

Father eternal and Lord of humanity,

Enwrap Thou my body and my soul beloved,

Safeguard me this night in the sanctuary of Thy love,

Shelter me this night in the shelter of the saints.

Thou hast brought me up from last night

To the gracious light of this day,

Great joy to provide for my soul,

And to do excelling good to me.

Thanks be to Thee, Jesu Christ,

For the many gifts Thou hast bestowed on me,

Each day and night, each sea and land,

Each weather fair, each calm, each wild.

I am giving Thee worship with my whole life,

I am giving Thee assent with my whole power,

I am giving Thee praise with my whole tongue,

I am giving Thee honor with my whole utterance.

I am giving Thee reverence with my whole understanding,

I am giving Thee offering with my whole thought,

I am giving Thee praise with my whole fervor,

I am giving Thee humility in the blood of the Lamb.

I am giving Thee love with my whole devotion,

I am giving Thee kneeling with my whole desire,

I am giving Thee love with my whole heart,

I am giving Thee affection with my whole sense;

I am giving Thee my existence with my whole mind,

I am giving Thee my soul, O God of all gods.

My thought, my deed,

My word, my will,

My understanding, my intellect,

My way, my state.

I am beseeching Thee

To keep me from ill,

To keep me from hurt,

To keep me from harm;

To keep me from mischance,

To keep me from grief,

To keep me this night

In the nearness of Thy love.

May God shield me,

May God fill me,

May God keep me,

May God watch me.

May God bring me

To the land of peace,

To the country of the King,

To the peace of eternity.

Praise to the Father,

Praise to the Son,

Praise to the Spirit,

The Three in One.

As found in Esther de Waal, (editor), The Celtic Vision; Prayers, Blessings, Songs and Incantations from the Gaelic Tradition 
Photo by me of a stone Celtic cross on Iona

Another Celtic morning prayer

May I arise this morning

feeling your warmth

embracing me,

conscious of your love

forgiving me,

knowing your peace

within me,

feeling your Spirit

strengthen me,

hearing your whisper

encouraging me.

In all I do

and in all I say

may my life 

this day

and all days

reflect

the beauty of my Lord.

- Celtic morning prayer from Faith and Worship

This is one of my favourite prayers so I post it again...

Image courtesy of dan / FreeDigitalPhotos.net