Prayer of St. Francis - Verse 11
“For it is in giving that we receive, it is in pardoning that we are pardoned, and it is in dying that we are born to Eternal Life. Amen.”
This week we focus on the final three verses of the St. Francis Prayer, where we continue our efforts of being an instrument in the hands of God. This whole prayer is a reminder of what true unconditional love calls us to: to love another person, purely for the good of that other person. In marriage, it calls us to die to ourselves for the wellbeing of our beloved. We love, because Christ loved us first and calls us to do the same for others. “Do nothing out of selfishness or out of vainglory; rather, humbly regard others as more important than yourselves, each looking out not for his own interests, but [also] everyone for those of others.” (Phil. 2:3-4).
We ask God for the grace to give without cost and from a purely generous heart. We are called to feed the needs of our spouse without a frustration for not receiving from them first. We are called to pick up our cross and follow Christ as He picked up His cross to give us a path to eternal life. For there is joy that can be received in a true sacrificial giving to someone in need, especially our spouse.
We also ask for God’s grace to pardon the offenses of our spouse and to not hold a grudge. In pardoning others, we free ourselves from the anger that holds us bound and keeps us bitter. And, in Matthew 6:14, we see where this passage of the prayer comes alive as God pardons our sins for doing the same for others: “For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.”
Lastly, this whole prayer is summed up in the last verse. Our ability to truly love, calls for a dying to our concupiscence and selfishness, by coming out of ourselves to serve the needs of others, especially our spouse and children. It is important to remember that marriage is a Sacrament of service, and for those who enter into it, it is their vocation and path to holiness and eternal happiness.
ACTION STEP: This week, seek to give more, forgive more, and live out love more in your home.