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Gerald Heard
GERALD HEARD (1889-1971). Born in London and educated at Cambridge University, he lectured on history at Oxford and was a British Broadcasting Corporation commentator on science before coming in 1937 to California, where he established Trabuco, a religious community with an oratory, a place of prayer. Among his works are The Creed of Christ and A Preface to Prayer.
POWER, WISDOM, LOVE
Eternal and Infinite Power: may I, meditating on You, be delivered from timidity.
Eternal and Infinite Wisdom: may I, contemplating You, be delivered from wavering.
Eternal and Infinite Love: may I, being united with You, love other people, not only myself.
SEEKING
Eternal Light and Life and Love: we seek the wisdom to see clearly what we should do, the vitality to perform fully what we perceive, and the devotion that rejoices when we have done what should be done.
ILLUMINE US
Eternal Light, drive the night of error and ignorance from our souls; purge our eyes from the surrounding mist; open our fast shut eyes. Shine in our hearts that we may taste the joy of Your light. Let Your radiance illumine every mind with truth.
ACCEPTANCE
God of patient Power, may I grow in my ability to accept with increasing willingness the grace of failure.
LIFE’S DIVINE DANCE
God of the universe, who calls us to participate in life’s divine dance, I would trustingly swing into the unfolding design of life. At every inner prompting of Your spirit, may I forget myself in unhesitating desire to help fulfill Your creative purposes.
LOVE OF ALL THAT IS
Love, You all-powerful foundation of all that is, maintaining and embracing the universe, founding and establishing and compacting it; knitting the whole together in Yourself, producing the universe continuously and attracting all things back unto Yourself: I rejoice in Your indestructible goodness.
FORGIVENESS
O God, may I forgive as eagerly as I desire to be forgiven.
JOYFUL VISION
May I have vision, O God, that I may see in every moment one more opportunity to turn to You with joy; with the joy of quiet confidence, with the joy of a tranquil heart and mind.
THE SUMMIT
Most Holy Spirit, who in Your wisdom creates this universe in ascending steps whereby we may arise to you: may we envision Your sublime supremacy, so that we, shunning all complacency, may steadfastly ascend to the summit, where You forever dwell in perfect majesty.
DAY BY DAY
O God, as I acknowledge that every good thing comes from You, I pray I may practice day by day: humility without despair, trust without conceit, love without jealousy, strength without domination, and gentleness without weakness.
FROM BEAUTY TO BEAUTY
O God, as we find clues to Your beauty scattered throughout the universe with ceaseless abundance, may we respond to these signs of Your strength to press on from beauty to beauty, never resting until we come into Your very presence, O Beauty Inexpressible.
THE JOYFUL VIRTUE
O God, deliver me from a complaining, whining temper.
Daily enlarge my capacity for that eternal joy which comes gladly from a heart full of praise.
A MORNING PRAYER
O God, I am at the beginning of another day that has never been before and will never come again. During it may I persist in that one thing that matters, adhering to You, so that at its close I may be nearer to that goal in which we find the purpose of our life.
