prayer | Mrs Summitt

I like to believe that I’m self-aware, I know my flaws, I know when I’ve crossed lines, I know when I’m not quite living up to my own promises and expectations. As humans, most of us trip on the journey and if we’re lucky we recover before we hit the ground or even after but with only a few bruises and scrapes to our soul. So, I consider the fact that I rarely “hit the ground” any more to be “proof” of my self-awareness.

I’m sure you are now thinking to yourself, “You sound sanctimonious not self-aware.”
I agree. I do.

When I sat down to write this post, I thought I understood what I was going to say, the points I wanted to make, the thrill I would get from sharing with you, my dear reader, all that God has given to me in the grace of self-awareness.

Not so much.

My original intent today was to discuss how even self-aware types can sometimes miss the call from God and I expect I’ll still end up there by the end of this post. However, a secondary theme is forming which is the thing that leads us to miss God’s call. Arrogant, Sanctimonious, Self-Righteous…these behaviors keep us from hearing God’s voice. Mainly because we think we already know what God is calling us to do so we stop listening. Basically, we send God to voicemail.

As you may recall, I wrote in my relaunch post for the site that I had been attempting to avoid God’s call. I thought at the time I was done running from Him. I realize now that while I’m not running anymore, I certainly don’t pick up every time He calls.

Why do I just now realize this? My journey is often clouded by little distractions, much as when a pull in a sweater you’re wearing catches your eye. You can’t help yourself, you pick at it, rub it, poke at it, maybe even tug on it to see if you can just pull the thread out without ruining the entire thing. Life sometimes gets that way for me. I end up with hours of time lost on picking at the pulls instead of focusing on listening for God and answering when He calls. Of course that doesn’t really answer the question of how I now realize I’ve been sending God to voicemail. That story starts in the next paragraph.

My brother-in-law, Chris, is an amazing man. Calm, rational, thoughtful, prayerful, giving and frankly, someone who could write a book on how to deal with his in-laws, including me. As usual when we finally have a chance to sit down as a family and catch up I mention some conversation with a colleague that I found amusing. I was at an event and one of my colleagues during an exchange said she felt that she would be seeing me on TV one day very soon. I laughed nervously and said “only if I’m arrested.” (True Fact: I am not always witty) In the exchange with Chris I mentioned that I don’t consider myself an extraordinary person and added in that I am of a certain age. We chatted a little more, he mentioned Mother Teresa and we talked about how I felt I was answering God’s call but perhaps had let a few calls go unanswered and needed to get back to my purpose. Then I realized – I still don’t know the answer to what that purpose is. I’m still just a few steps in and I haven’t been asking for that next step to be illuminated.

That leads me to this moment, this post and some very odd musings.

I’m apparently not self-aware or God-aware.

Did those unanswered calls include the revelation of God’s vision of my true purpose?

Was my spiritual answering machine at least plugged in so I can listen to God’s voicemails? Did He leave any?

Is there some way He could text me instead? I’m really good at answering my texts, not so good at answering calls.

Maybe He tweets and I just need to find His twitter handle?

Maybe I shouldn’t have deleted my FB account. He might have been sending me messages there.

Why can’t I ever actually quiet my mind, even in prayer (or blog post writing)?

Is He calling me to play powerball yet?

Does this line of thinking indicate I’ve gone off the deep end?

Ok, so perhaps God is unlikely to respond to these particular questions but He always answers the important ones and I’ve learned not to take for granted that I will always hear His call. First, I need to learn to listen for His call no matter what else is going on in my life.

To that end, I am going to pray The Litany of Humility and then head to confession.

O Jesus meek and humble of heart, hear me
From the desire of being esteemed………Deliver Me Jesus
From the desire of being loved………….Deliver me Jesus
From the desire of being extolled ……….Deliver me Jesus
From the desire of being honored…………..Deliver me Jesus
From the desire of being praised……… Deliver me Jesus.
From the desire of being preferred………Deliver me Jesus
From the desire of being consulted………..Deliver me Jesus
From the desire of being approved………….Deliver me Jesus
From the fear of being humiliated………Deliver me Jesus
From the fear of being despised…………Deliver me Jesus
From the fear of suffering rebukes…………..Deliver me Jesus
From the fear of being calumniated………..Deliver me Jesus
From the fear of being forgotten……………. Deliver me Jesus
From the fear of being ridiculed…………..Deliver me Jesus
From the fear of being wronged…………Deliver me Jesus
From the fear of being suspected………..Deliver me Jesus
That others may be loved more than I……….Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it
That others may be esteemed more than I …………….Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it
That in the opinion of the world others may increase and I may decrease…………..Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it
That others may be chosen and I set aside…………Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it
That others may be praised and I unnoticed…………Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it
That others may become holier than I, provided that I may became as holy as I should…………………..Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it. Amen and Amen

Yours in Christ’s Love,

Mrs. Summitt

I feel compelled this evening to write a post focused on praying. Not just any prayers, but specifically prayers targeted at protecting us and using the authority given to us by God to drive evil from our midst.

Usually, I keep my less mainstream way of viewing prayer’s capabilities to my immediate family but today I experienced a very marked call to share it in this blog. Some may find it fantastical, others may consider it fear mongering, but regardless of any single person or group’s perception, this post will be written.

I’ve often heard the saying, “Satan’s biggest accomplishment has been convincing people that he doesn’t exist.” I agree with this statement. I’ve had discussions with lifelong Catholics who have shared that they believe that Satan doesn’t exist. That hell doesn’t exist. That while people may do horrible things, there is no Satan, demon or evil entity urging people to do bad things. Needless to say, I pray for people who hold these views. The Devil/Satan is there and He is still hoping to gather more souls away from God.

Back to the topic at hand, prayers of protection. I have faith that as I say the words of these prayers that God hears me and pulls me to Him as a father to a child, protecting me from the elements and those who might do harm. He empowers me to dispel the darkest of entities and banish them from my presence. He charges his Archangel, St. Michael, to defend me. He provides me an army to drive out any and all evil with St. Michael, St. Gabriel, St. Raphael and all the Holy Archangels. All I have to do to invoke this amazing heavenly security system, is pray. (How awesome is that!)

I’d like to share two prayers I have been using recently. One written by Pope Leo XIII while the other author remains unknown (at least to me). The first is familiar to most Catholics and is finally being said at the end of Mass again here where we live. The second may be familiar to some. I learned of it through a holy card with one of the orders I placed on the Cukierski’s website.

The St. Michael Prayer

Short Version:

Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle, be our protection against the malice and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him we humbly pray; and do thou, O Prince of the Heavenly host, by the power of God, thrust into hell Satan and all evil spirits who wander through the world for the ruin of souls. Amen.

Long Version:

“O Glorious Prince of the heavenly host, St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in the battle and in the terrible warfare that we are waging against the principalities and powers, against the rulers of this world of darkness, against the evil spirits. Come to the aid of man, whom Almighty God created immortal, made in His own image and likeness, and redeemed at a great price from the tyranny of Satan.

“Fight this day the battle of the Lord, together with the holy angels, as already thou hast fought the leader of the proud angels, Lucifer, and his apostate host, who were powerless to resist thee, nor was there place for them any longer in Heaven. That cruel, ancient serpent, who is called the devil or Satan who seduces the whole world, was cast into the abyss with his angels. Behold, this primeval enemy and slayer of men has taken courage. Transformed into an angel of light, he wanders about with all the multitude of wicked spirits, invading the earth in order to blot out the name of God and of His Christ, to seize upon, slay and cast into eternal perdition souls destined for the crown of eternal glory. This wicked dragon pours out, as a most impure flood, the venom of his malice on men of depraved mind and corrupt heart, the spirit of lying, of impiety, of blasphemy, and the pestilent breath of impurity, and of every vice and iniquity.

“These most crafty enemies have filled and inebriated with gall and bitterness the Church, the spouse of the immaculate Lamb, and have laid impious hands on her most sacred possessions. In the Holy Place itself, where the See of Holy Peter and the Chair of Truth has been set up as the light of the world, they have raised the throne of their abominable impiety, with the iniquitous design that when the Pastor has been struck, the sheep may be.

“Arise then, O invincible Prince, bring help against the attacks of the lost spirits to the people of God, and give them the victory. They venerate thee as their protector and patron; in thee holy Church glories as her defense against the malicious power of hell; to thee has God entrusted the souls of men to be established in heavenly beatitude. Oh, pray to the God of peace that He may put Satan under our feet, so far conquered that he may no longer be able to hold men in captivity and harm the Church. Offer our prayers in the sight of the Most High, so that they may quickly find mercy in the sight of the Lord; and vanquishing the dragon, the ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, do thou again make him captive in the abyss, that he may no longer seduce the nations. Amen.

V. Behold the Cross of the Lord; be scattered ye hostile powers.
R. The Lion of the tribe of Judah has conquered the root of David.
V. Let Thy mercies be upon us, O Lord.
R. As we have hoped in Thee.
V. O Lord, hear my prayer.
R. And let my cry come unto Thee.

Let us pray.

O God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, we call upon Thy holy Name, and as supplicants, we implore Thy clemency, that by the intercession of Mary, ever Virgin Immaculate and our Mother, and of the glorious St. Michael the Archangel, Thou wouldst deign to help us against Satan and all the other unclean spirits who wander about the world for the injury of the human race and the ruin of souls. Amen.”

Prayer of Authority

In the Name of Jesus Christ, By the Power of His Blood…

In the Authority of His Word given to me as a Christian…

I bind and reject you satan and I command you to leave and I seal this room and place of employment, and all the members of my family, friends, relatives and possessions, in the Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ.

I bind and reject all familiar spirits, all companion spirits, all cardinal spirits and spirits of affliction.

I bind and reject all spirits in the air, in the wind, in fire, in the netherworld, in the elements, all satanic forces of nature.

I bind and reject all spirits of confusion, disruption, division, fear, disbelief, deaf and dumb, disobedience, and spirit of games.

I bind and reject all the aspects and attributes of these spirits.

I bind and reject all interlocking spirits…

I command that there will be no communication between you or anyone else.

I command that you leave quietly.

In the name of Our Lord Jesus Christ, I break and dissolve every curse, spell, hexes, evil wishes, evil desires and hereditary seals.

I come against all satanic vows, pacts, satanic sacrifices and Voo Doo practices.

I break and dissolve all links with psychics, clairvoyants, astrologers, mediums, occult seers, satanic cults, fortune tellers, seances, ouija boards, tarot cards and occult games of all kinds.

Come Holy Spirit and fill this room corner to corner, ceiling to floor.

St. Michael, St. Gabriel, St. Raphael, and all the Holy Archangels, come and fight this battle for me.

I ask the help of all the Holy Angels, Holy Dominations, Holy Powers, Holy Thrones, and Holy Principalities to be my “Shield of Defense” against all evil spirits.

I ask this in the name of Our Lord Jesus Christ by the power of His blood and in the authority of His Word given to me as a Christian.

Amen.

Some additional prayers of protection can be found at this site:

http://www.catholicwarriors.com/pages/warfare_prayers.htm

I strongly urge you to prayerfully consider using both of these immediately and frequently (feel free to sprinkle some holy water around the place as you do!). If your loved ones won’t say them with you, then say them on your own. Believe in the words and promises given to us as Catholics and Christians by God.

God Bless!

Mrs. Summitt