The Prayer of Saint Francis in practice
by Fred Schaeffer, SFO

Lord, make me an instrument of thy 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,

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,

Pardoning that we are pardoned,

And dying to self that we are born unto Eternal life. Amen.

The two greatest commandments that contain the whole law of God are, thou shalt love the Lord with thy whole heart, and with thy whole soul, and with thy whole mind, and with thy whole strength, and, thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. 

The prayer of Saint Francis contains everything to make us ready for life. In this day and age of anger and stress, which one sees in the daily news, and in people who are so stressed out that they no longer know what they are doing, there's got to be an alternative. It's so simple. Seek prayer from a Prayer Minister, go to Church. Examine what you can do for others. Feed the hungry, not only with bread but with the Word of Life, with the teachings of Jesus Christ. Give drink to the thirsty. See that forlorn person on the street who lives in rags. Offer him or her a glass of water or something better. Clothe the naked. Empty that wardrobe and give away what you no longer need, to the needy. Visit the imprisoned: that doesn't necessarily mean prisoners but visit the lonely who are imprisoned in their homes because they have no one. And if you can't find anything to talk about, talk about the prayers you think the other might love, too. Shelter the homeless, provided shelter for those who have no home, and that's meant in the worldly as well as in the religious sense: bring those who are away from the Sacraments back to the House of God and to the unity between us. Visit the sick, not just those in your family but all those who need help. Bury the dead... visit with people whose loved ones have passed and offer your support, too.

Admonish the sinner: your prayer and support may bring the sinner back to saving grace. Instruct the Ignorant - share your faith in God with those who know Him not. Counsel the Doubtful - share your faith enthusiasm so that others may feel drawn to Christ. Comfort the sorrowful with your good cheer. Give them a shoulder to cry on. Bear wrongs patiently. Don't fly off the handle. Look at Jesus, He wouldn't get angry, but instead, he would ask what He could do to calm you down. Forgive all those who are injuring you as well as those who desire to injure people around you and pray for everyone including this sinner. Ask Saint Francis for his intercession - he understood what needed to be done while he was still alive. And ask Our Blessed Mother, Immaculately Conceived, the most perfect person in the world next to Jesus-she lived among us and she is at God's elbow. She's our mother and we are her children.

Home