FEAST OF SAINTS BASIL AND GREGORY – 2nd JANUARY
January 2, 2024
THE SURRENDER NOVENA
January 2, 2024
2 January, 2024
But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. – James 1: 22-24
Eternal God, your Omniscient attribute gives you complete knowledge of the mind, heart and soul of your human creation. You know Lord, all that we are and all that we want and desire. You know, Heavenly Father, that we are essentially sinful creatures, swayed easily by the glitter of the temporal things of this earth. You know Lord, that we commit the frequent error of giving importance to worldly matters, and putting off or ignoring spiritual values, in the wrong assessment that we have time on our side, thus failing to prioritise your plans for us. Lord, we need your word for our guidance, for aligning our lives to your Holy Will.
Lord, we sadly forget that our lives are in your hands, and that it can come to an end in a split second if that is your plan for us. Every single breath that we take is what you give us, Lord, and what you give, you can take away if your wrath is provoked by our shameful sinfulness. Lord, you have therefore given us your Holy Word, to delve into, understand, meditate upon and put into action in our lives, looking carefully at how it applies to our life, and to our relationships. Through receiving it by faith and applying it immediately, we should persevere in making it our natural way of life, thus bringing forth the fruit of it in our lives and gaining your grace and blessings.
We are exhorted and instructed by your Holy Word, to seek the right path, perform the right purpose and so fulfill our mission for your greater glory, O Lord. Your Word tells us to proceed with caution and care every step of our way, for your precepts have to be followed without deceiving ourselves and believing the fallacies about our fickle nature, but, relying on the counseling of the Holy Spirit, performing our Christian duties with fervor and great obedience on a continual basis. Lord, help us to follow carefully your plans for our life, careful not to provoke your wrath by wilful opposition, rather, growing morally and spiritually by conforming to your Holy Will, in Jesus’ Name. Amen
