Lord, almighty power, my soul is irresolute: strengthen it in every virtue. Make firm my heart, weak in all good actions, on the rock of your commandments. Lord, ever day I realize by experience that without you I am nothing; without you I cannot do any good; without you there is in me nothing but evil in its various forms; without you I am doomed to be lost. Lord, words cannot express your goodness: fill my heart with your goodness. But above all, please, I ask you, grant that I may love you with all my heart and my neighbour as myself. Lord, save me from ill-will towards others; save me from being proud and too sure of myself; from being disobedient. Grant that I may be gentle, humble, caring, respectful and obedient. Amen.
Lord, do not let us leave unused your spiritual and material gifts; do not let them have no effect on us. Grant that they may be used for good results and the salvation of people. Make it to happen in all of us. May the number of your talents be increased by the personal activity of each one of us.
Lord, do not allow for one moment that I should do the will of your and my enemy the devil; but grant that I may continually do your will, and do only the will of my God and my King, by whom all kings reign.
Grant that I may always obey you, revere you truly and firmly.
“Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker. Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling.” (Psalm 95:6 Psalm 2:11)
Lord, grant that I may see my transgressions. Grant that I may not despise sinners; they are like me.
Grant that I may not nourish any ill-feeling in my heart against them because of their sins.
Grant that I may despise myself as I deserve, because I am the greatest of sinners.
Grant that I may always feel implacable hatred towards myself, my own fallen nature: “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own life - he cannot be my disciple,” (Luke 14:26) says the Lord.
O infinitely great Benefactor, my Saviour!
When I represent to myself the infinite corruption of my nature by many different sins and passions, my spirit is despondent and downcast.
But as soon as I remember you; that you came to renew my nature corrupted by sin; to confer on me, who had been dishonoured and shamed, the nobility of the angels. even higher that that, the nobility of the Son of God himself, through faith in you; through new birth by water and the Spirit; through communion to the Holy Mysteries.
Instantaneously, then my spirit rises from its despondency; it shakes off the infamy of the passions; it is completely filled with gratitude towards you.
Glory to you, O infinite mercy and power, Son of God.
Take me captive, Lord, in the sweet captivity of your Holy Spirit, that my words may flow “like streams in the Negev” (Psalm 126:4), to your glory and to the salvation of your people.
Let my tongue be the p[en of a skillful writer (Psalm 45:1) the Holy Spirit.
Lord, grant me a heart that is simple, kind, open, believing, loving and generous. Make it worthy of being your dwelling, Most Gracious One!
O God, creator and master of the world, in your mercy protect your creature, adorned with your divine image, in these hours of the morning.
Let your eyes, millions of times brighter than the rays of the sun, put life and light into my soul, darkened and slain by sin.
Deliver me from depression and laziness.
Grant me joy and vigour of soul, that with a glad heart I may praise your mercy, your holiness, your unlimited greatness and your infinite perfections, at every hour and in every place.
For you, Lord, are my Creator and the master of my life and your rational creatures at every hour ascribe glory and praise to you, now and ever and unto ages of ages Amen
Almighty sovereign, to whose single sign all things, the whole visible and invisible world are obedient, grant that I may unceasingly glorify you by the simplicity of my faith in your infinite power. Give me faith that will not be ashamed, firm hope and unfeigned love for you and for my neighbour.
Lord, let my heart cling to you alone, and not to anything earthly; for in earthly attachments there is sorrow, oppression and torment. Let nothing earthly be dear to my heart, but grant that I may hold you, the one Lord, of greater worth than all; and that I may esteem also everything heavenly and the soul created in your image: immortal, rational, able to speak, free, the breath of your mouth. Let nothing earthly, money, food, dress, rank, signs of distinction, become the idol of my heart.
Grant, Lord, that I may always love each of my neighbours as myself. That I may not be angry with them for any reason, because in that way I would serve the devil. Grant that I may crucify my self-love, pride, greed, unbelief and other passions.
Let mutual love be our name. Grant that we may believe and trust that the Lord is everything to us all. That we may not be worried nor anxious about anything. That you, our God, may truly be the only God of our heart, and nothing besides you. Let there by union of love between us as there ought to be, and let everything that divides us from each other, and prevents us from loving one another, be despised by us, like the dust trampled under foot.
So be it! So be it!
May the living water of the Holy Spirit fill my heart and may rivers of living water flow from my heart to the glory of God,, and for the salvation of God’s people.
Lord, I acknowledge that neither in the country nor in the forest are to be found life and health and vigour of spirit and body, but with you in the temple and above all during the Liturgy and in your holy and life-giving Mysteries. They are our greatest blessedness, the Lord God’s constant and wonderful Providence for saving and sanctifying us, the prefiguration of eternal life.
Great is your love, O lord. You have spent yourself to the end out of love for me. I gaze on the Cross and marvel at your love for me and for the world, for the Cross is the evidence of your love for us. “There is no greater love than this, that a man should lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13) Your life-giving Mysteries, Lord, serve as a perpetual, glorious proof of your love for us sinners; for your divine body was broken for me, for us all, and your blood was poured out for me, for us all. Lord, I glorify the wonders accomplished by your Holy Mysteries on your believers, and the innumerable healings. Lord, in return for your great love, grant that I may love you with all my heart and my neighbour as myself. Grant that I may also love my enemies and not only those who love me.
Lord, I thank you with my whole heart for having saved me innumerable times from the shamefulness, violence and cruelty of the passions; for having extinguished in me the burning arrows of the evil one. For having guarded my soul with peace, refreshing it with the dew of your grace. Glory to you, most merciful and almighty Lord; by your grace I still remain whole and unharmed, in spite of the innumerable schemes of the invisible and most evil enemies making every effort to devour me.
I believe and I know, Lord, that you will deliver and save me from all their snares and calumnies in your wisdom you will grant your heavenly kingdom to me, and not only to me, but to all those who serve you and are subjected to the calumnies of evil spirits.
For you are merciful, you save those who desire to be saved, and even those who do not desire to be saved.
O Loving Savour, having come down from heaven for the service of mankind, you did not only preach the word of heavenly truth in the temple, but you went through the towns and villages. You did not avoid anyone. You visited the houses of all, especially of those whose fervent repentance you divinely foresaw. You did not remain sitting at home, but you had loving conversation with all. Grant us too to have such loving conversation with your people, so that we pastors would not shut ourselves up in our houses away from your flock as if in castles or prisons, coming out only for services in church, only out of duty, only with prayers learned by heart. May our lips be freely opened to talk with our parishioners in a spirit of faith and love. May our Christian love for our spiritual children be opened and strengthened by animated, free, and fatherly conversation with them. “Do no forget to do good and to share with others.” (Hebrews 13:16)
O sweetest name, holiest name, almighty name of our Lord Jesus Christ! My victory, Lord, glory to you! Lord, we are your members, we are one body, you are our head. Lord, grant that all passions, all demons will flee from us. Lord, confer on us the grace of never failing love. Lord, grant that we may show respect and love to each other, as to yourself, for we are made godly by you.
Glory to the never failing power of your Cross, O Lord! When the enemy oppresses me by sinful thoughts and feelings, and I , having no freedom in my heart, make the sign of the cross several times with faith, then my sin suddenly passes away from me, the difficulty vanishes, and I obtain freedom. Glory to you, Lord, How good it is to be with you!
Lord, your name is Love - do not cast me away, erring as I am.
Your name is Power - strengthen me, who so often grow weak and fail.
Your name is Light - enlighten my soul, darkened by earthly passions.
Your name is Peace - appease my troubled soul.
Your name is Mercy - do not cease to forgive me.
O Holy trinity, our God, incomplex Being, who has created our soul in your image, grant that we may have life and peace in you.
O Holy Trinity, our Nourisher and Hope, grant that we may ever put our trust in you alone.
You carry us all like a mother in your arms, and you feed us all with your hand, like the most tender mother. You never forget us, and you will never forget us, for you have said yourself: “Can an mother forget the baby at her breast? Though she may forget, I will not forget you” (Isaiah 49:15) that is - I will not cease to feed, preserve, protect, deliver and save you. You have also said yourself: “Never shall I leave you; never will I forsake you.” (Hebrews 13:5 quoting Deuteronomy 31:6). Why, then, are we anxious about our food? Why are we so greedy? Why do we overeat and delight ourselves in delicacies? Why do we grudge to share with our neighbours? O impiety! O blindness! O filthy self-love! O want of love for God and our neighbour! For God dwells in the person of our neighbour and therefore we begrudge his own gifts to God himself. Remember how generously the Spirit-bearing prophet Elisha rewarded the Shunamite woman who received him in her house and entertained him in the simplicity of her heart. He implored God to give her a son, and afterwards, when this son died, he raised him from the dead.