Prayer of Saint Francis
Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace;
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
Where there is injury, pardon;
Where there is doubt, faith;
Where there is despair, hope;
Where there is darkness, light;
And where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master,
Grant that I may not so much seek
To be consoled as to console;
To be understood, as to understand;
To be loved, as to love;
For it is in giving that we receive,
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
And it is in dying that we are
born to Eternal Life.
Amen.
Have you ever prayed to become an instrument? If you have prayed the prayer above, you have! We usually think of an instrument as a device used to produce music. Saint Francis prayed about being a different kind of instrument: one used by God to produce the music of peace and love.
Despite modern technologies (and maybe because of them), our world is more divided and more in need of peace than ever. Saint Francis guides us in becoming part of the solution rather than part of the problem. Saint Francis guides us in giving all that we are and all that we have to God. When we bring ourselves to God, he weaves us into his symphony of peace and praise. Oct. 4 is the feast day on which many churches remember Saint Francis and his legacy of love. Saint Francis was born in to a prosperous Italian family in the year 1181. When praying before the San Damiano Cross, Francis heard God’s voice calling him to “repair my house.” Francis believed God was calling him to rebuild the Church and his own contemporary society. So Francis gave up his riches and traveled about sharing God’s love in word and deed, and rebuilding churches, stone by stone. He founded the Franciscan orders, which are committed to the dignity of the human person and the care of creation.
Francis saw all of creation as coming from God’s goodness, leaving “footprints” that can lead us back to God, if we are able to “read” nature properly. In Canticle of the Sun, Saint Francis wrote,
“Most High, all-powerful, good Lord . . .
praised be You, my Lord, with all your creatures.”
Saint Francis sang this Canticle with his friends, even on his deathbed. The Canticle has inspired many musical compositions such as William Henry Draper’s hymn entitled, All Creatures of Our God and King (published in 1919). More importantly, St. Francis’ life and Canticle have inspired many generations of people, to extol the God of all creation.
St. Francis realized he too, was created by God. He brought his whole self in service to God, body, mind and spirit. This grew his heart of love and praise to God. The apostle Paul put it this way when he wrote a letter to the church at Rome:
“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy,
to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—
this is your true and proper worship (Romans 12:1,2)”.
When we bring ourselves to Christ, when we offer our very selves to him, he frees us from sin and death. Christ unites us with himself and one another. As Saint Francis knew, we are born anew to eternal life. The beautiful new life that Christ gives us by grace begins now, and lasts into eternity. May we join with Christ, St. Francis and all the creatures, in singing praise to God.
May God weave us into his symphony of peace and praise!
(for more artwork on St. Francis, available as originals, prints and greeting cards, see my website at: http://www.FestalDesign.com or email me at: BjellandBarbara@gmail.com)
Join the conversation: What things do you see and hear around you, that are part of God’s symphony of peace and praise?
THE ART OF FAITH 