Powerful Prayers

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Immaculate Heart of Mary,

full of love for God and mankind,

and of compassion for sinners,

I consecrate myself to thee.

I entrust to thee the salvation of my soul.

May my heart be ever united with thine,

so that I may hate sin,

love God and my neighbor,

and reach eternal life with those whom I love.

May I experience the kindness of thy motherly heart

and the power of thine intercession with Jesus

during my life and at the hour of my death.

Amen.

Courageous Joseph, advised by an angel,

you confront your fears of the unknown.

Your light shines brightly, penetrating the dark corners of your being.

Your fears dispersed, you rediscover your true face,

and actively participate in the divine project.

Once you helped reunite a Mother with her Child;

just so reunite a people with their God.

Together with Mary and Jesus, you dwell in the heart of God.

Help us to rediscover the solid core of our identities,

beyond all internal fears.

Counsel us so we may build a better world

to welcome the coming kingdom.

Shed your light on our inner lives,

that, freed from the grip of our anxiety,

our decisions may be founded in Love.

May the face of God shine on us!

 Amen.

St. Michael the Archangel, 

defend us in battle. 

Be our defense against the wickedness and snares of the Devil. 

May God rebuke him, we humbly pray, 

and do thou, 

O Prince of the heavenly hosts, 

by the power of God, 

thrust into hell Satan, 

and all the evil spirits, 

who prowl about the world 

seeking the ruin of souls. Amen

Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,

Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me,

Christ on my right, Christ on my left,

Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down,

Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,

Christ in the mouth of every man who speaks of me,

Christ in the eye that sees me,

Christ in the ear that hears me.

 Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; for he hath visited and redeemed his people,
And hath raised up a mighty salvation for us in the house of his servant David;
As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets, which have been since the world began:
That we should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us;
To perform the mercy promised to our fathers, and to remember his holy covenant;
The oath which he sware to our father Abraham,
That he would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies might serve him without fear,
In holiness and righteousness before him, all the days of our life.
And thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the Highest: for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways;
To give knowledge of salvation unto his people by the remission of their sins,
Through the tender mercy of our God; whereby the dayspring from on high hath visited us,
To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.
And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his shewing unto Israel. 

O Jesus! meek and humble of heart, Hear me. 

From the desire of being esteemed,

Deliver me, Jesus. (repeat after each line)

From the desire of being loved, 

From the desire of being extolled, 

From the desire of being honored, 

From the desire of being praised, 

From the desire of being preferred to others, 

From the desire of being consulted, 

From the desire of being approved, 

From the fear of being humiliated, 

From the fear of being despised, 

From the fear of suffering rebukes, 

From the fear of being calumniated, 

From the fear of being forgotten, 

From the fear of being ridiculed, 

From the fear of being wronged, 

From the fear of being suspected

That others may be loved more than I

Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it. (repeat after each line) 

That others may be esteemed more than I

That, in the opinion of the world, others may increase and I may decrease

That others may be chosen and I set aside, 

That others may be praised and I unnoticed, 

That others may be preferred to me in everything, 

That others may become holier than I, provided that I may become as holy as I should.