EASTER NOVENA*
MEDITATION
Through His Resurrection Jesus Christ was made known to us as God’s Son in power, for He was obedient unto death and exalted as Lord of all. God chose His Son to be the one to suffer and to die for our sins.
Because of His obedience He was raised up as Lord of all. By conquering death through His own power in His Resurrection, Jesus has shown Himself Master of life and death. Therefore He is true God and true Man, our Saviour.
By His Death and Resurrection Jesus redeemed mankind from slavery to sin and to the devil. In obedience to His Father’s Will He gave Himself for us in His Passion and arose from the dead that He might redeem us from sin and make us a people pleasing to the Father. He is the Messiah, God’s own Son. He often said that what He was doing was done that the Scriptures might be fulfilled because He saw His Father’s will in them.
We were slaves of the devil because of original sin and because of our personal sins. But Jesus made us free with the freedom of the children of God, for by His Resurrection He destroyed death and gave us the life of grace. Risen truly, the Lord gives us the Divine life of grace and pours out His Holy Spirit upon us.
Each of the Gospel episodes, as we read them during the Easter Season, centers on an all-important appearance to the Apostles in which they are commissioned for their future task, namely, to be witnesses of the Lord, Who is alive and will be with us until the end of the world (Mk 28:16-20). This is the Paschal message to all Christians.
Following the example of the Bible, Christians celebrate the mystery of our Lord’s Resurrection for fifty days. The Lord’s Ascension and Pentecost are the final memorial days. St Paul says, “Christ has become our Paschal sacrifice; let us feast with joy in the Lord.” (1 Cor 5:6-8)
THE WORD OF GOD
“The Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and scribes, who will condemn Him to death. They will turn Him over to the Gentiles to be made sport of and flogged and crucified. But on the third day he will be raised up.” (Mt 20:17-19)
“In the time after His Suffering He showed them in many convincing ways that He was alive, appearing to them over the course of forty days and speaking to them about the Reign of God.” (Acts 1:3)
“I handed on to you first of all what I myself received, that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures; that He was buried and, in accordance with the Scriptures, rose on the third day; that He was seen by Cephas, then by the Twelve. After that He was seen by five hundred brothers at once.” (1 Cor 15:3-5)
NOVENA PRAYERS
Novena Prayer
Jesus, I believe that by Your own power You rose from death, as You promised, a glorious Victor. May this mystery strengthen my hope in another and better life after death, the resurrection of my body on the last day, and an eternity of happiness.
I firmly hope that You will keep Your promise to me and raise me up glorified. Through Your glorious Resurrection I hope that You will make my body like Your own in glory and life, and permit me to dwell with You in heaven for all eternity.
I believe that Your Resurrection is the crown of Your life and work as God-Man, because it is Your glorification. This is the beginning of the glorious life that was due to You as the Son of God. Your Resurrection is also the reward of Your life of suffering.
Jesus, my Risen Lord and King, I adore Your Sacred Humanity which receives this eternal Kingdom of honour, power, joy and glory. I rejoice with You, my Master, glorious, immortal and all-powerful.
Through the glorious mystery of Your Resurrection I ask You to help me to rise with You spiritually and to live a life free from sin, that I may be bent upon doing God’s Will in all things, and may be patient in suffering. Through the Sacraments may my soul be enriched evermore with sanctifying grace, the source of Divine life. I also ask that You grant me this special request: (Mention your request). May Your Will be done!
Prayer to the Risen Saviour
Jesus, Son of God, I thank You for accepting the Cross and freeing us from the power of the enemy. I believe that by Your Resurrection You conquered the power of death and opened for us the way to eternal life.
I thank You for having redeemed me and for making me a child of God.
Look upon me with love. Raise me up and renew my life by the Spirit You have given me. May I follow You in Your risen life.
Draw me to the life where Your Spirit makes all life complete.
May I come at last to share the glory of Your Resurrection in heaven.
Prayer for Faith in the Risen Lord
Father in heaven, in the Resurrection of Your Son we come to know the full depth of Your love. You have freed us from the darkness of error and sin.
Increase my understanding and my love of the riches You have revealed in Him Who is Lord forever. May the light of faith shine in my words and actions. Help me to cling to Your truths with fidelity.
May I, who have received your gift of faith, share in the new life of the Risen Christ. Keep me alive in Him, ever true to His teaching till Your glory is revealed in me.
Prayer
God our Father, by raising Christ Your Son you conquered the power of death and opened for us the way to eternal life. Let our celebration of Easter raise us up and renew our lives by the Spirit that is within us.
You wash away our sins in water, give us new birth in the Spirit, and redeem us in the Blood of Christ.
May we look forward with hope to our Resurrection, for You have made us Your sons and daughters and restored the joy of our youth.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever. Amen.
*http://livingwatercommunity.com/easter/easter_novena.htm
I Am Not the Person I Used To Be
“I am not what I ought to be — ah, how imperfect and deficient! I am not what I wish to be — I abhor what is evil, and I would cleave to what is good! I am not what I hope to be — soon, soon shall I put off mortality, and with mortality all sin and imperfection. Yet, though I am not what I ought to be, nor what I wish to be, nor what I hope to be, I can truly say, I am not what I once was; a slave to sin and Satan; and I can heartily join with the apostle (Paul), and acknowledge, "By the grace of God I am what I am. (And His grace in me has not been fruitless.)”
Often paraphrased as “I am not the man I ought to be, I am not the man I wish to be, and I am not the man I hope to be, but by the grace of God, I am not the man I used to be."'
John Newton
Photo: mclfgbc.com
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