Sometimes at Morning Mass I use a few lines of a prayer. I remember it from somewhere, maybe, I think, an old Redemptorist Parish Mission Prayer Book.

Like a lot of the bits I like and recall, I don’t think I’ve remembered it word perfect. That said, maybe I’ve enough of it to use.

It is set at the beginning of the day and entrusts the day ahead to the Lord’s care and guiding hand.

The lines I like come close to, if not at, the end.  They go something like this:

And when night comes, may I look back on this day,

with no bitterness or regret in my heart

because of anything I’ve said or done,

left unsaid or failed to do ….. 

Alas, I’ve had days that have ended with regret, whatever about bitterness but with the God of Mercy, and the passing of night, there’s a new day ahead.

For all of us …..

PS … Yes, it’s the Redemptorist Morning Prayer (just Googled)

God of my life, I welcome this new day. it is your gift to me, a new creation, a promise of resurrection. I thank you for the grace of being alive this morning. I thank you for the sleep that has refreshed me. I thank you for this chance to make a new beginning. This day Lord is full of promise and opportunity; let me waste none of it. This day is full of mystery and the unknown; help me to face it without fear or anxiety. This day is blessed with beauty and adventure: make me fully alive to it all. During this day keep me thoughtful, prayerful and kind. May I be courteous and helpful to others, and not turned in on myself. Keep me from any word that would hurt, or belittle, or destroy; and may the thoughts of my mind be pleasing in your sight. When night comes again, may I look back on this day with no grievance or bitterness in my heart; and may nobody be unhappy because of anything I have done or anything I have failed to do. Lord, bless this day for me and for everyone. Make it a day in which we grow to have the mind of Christ, your Son. Lord Jesus Christ, friend and brother, may we know you more clearly, love you more dearly, and follow you more nearly, day by day. Amen.

(Source: Come, Lord Jesus: Redemptorist Mission and Novena Book)

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