St Therese of Lisieux, The Little Flower

Father Barron examines the life of St Therese of Lisieux. One of Catholicism's most beloved saints and the patron saint of France and of Catholic Missionaries. Beautiful and inspiring !!!

The Little Way

The Little Way of Saint Therese of Lisieux offers a path of childlike surrender to God that has been embraced by millions.  Here is an opportunity to ponder the depths of Saint Therese’s simple insights and discover their power in your own life.

Healing of Spirit

 Excerpt from “With Confidence and Trust”

by Fr. Bob Colaresi, O.Carm.

Jesus, Son of God, we need Your healing touch and uplifting arms.

There are areas of our spirit which are wounded and hurting in

darkness, fear and loneliness;

images of God which haunt us rather than befriend us;

images of ourselves as unworthy, inadequate, and ugly;

perceptions of being guilty or shamed because of who we are;

we become rigid and righteous; parts of our spirit are blind and crooked,

stopped with the burdens of life; negative expectations become

self-fulfilling prophecy;

we get overwhelmed and don’t seek help.

 We carry the heavy and arrogant burden of earning our

salvation by our good works,

piety, prayers, penance and rituals, rather than accepting

Your unconditional love as a free gift. 

Jesus there are lost paths and dangling pieces of us which need

to be pulled together, and uplifted in Your arms.

 Our spirits stagger without You.  Heal us with the humility of

St. Therese who embraced her littleness and allowed

Your outstretched arms to lift her to the heights.

 We ask You this through the intercession of St. Therese,

who teaches us confidenc and trust in Your love.

Loving Father,

Your precepts most certainly run counter to my natural inclinations,

And without the help of grace it would be impossible for me to understand them,

Much less put them into practice.

My inclination is to love those who love me.  But even the most

sinful among us does this much.

My inclination is to be kind for the sake of being considered so.

But you ask more. I am inclined to be kind in the hope

that my kindness will be returned.

But you tell me that I must do good, hoping for no return.

Come, then, my loving Father,

You have been kind to me all my days; bless me still

As this day ends and the night begins.

Loving Father, you are better than I am at remembering my frailty,

that I have come from dust.

Let me not forget who I am and from where I have come.

 If my soul seems to be forever dry when I hope for passion,

 if despite my best efforts I still fall asleep in your presence,

 if I feel nothing but spiritual desolation as though I have been

abandoned by You,

let me remember what Therese never forgot:

that little children asleep or awake, are equally dear to their parents.

 Come then, my loving Father, you have blessed all my days;

 bless me still as this day ends and the night begins.

Loving Father, You are the source of great gifts

 but you also ask for great sacrifice,

At times, you may ask me to taste to the full a bitter chalice,

 even the sacrifice of all that is dearest to me on earth.

 And though you never ask for what is beyond my strength,

it is impossible for me not to cry out as Jesus did

  during his agony in the garden;

“My Father let this chalice pass from me,”

 But let me never forget to add as your Son did:

 “not as I will, but as you will,”

 for was it not by suffering and death that you ransomed the world?

Come then, my loving Father,

 you have blessed all my days; bless me still as this day ends

and the night begins.

Say All Through The Day

Our Father Does Not Inspire Us To Do What Cannot Be Done

My Loving Father, it is only in the deepening silence of this night

when I am here alone with you that I am able to admit with 

embarrassmemt to the

dream of being a saint that you have 

planted in my heart.

I am, it seems to me, the most unlikely of souls 

to cherish such a dream, and the least able to make it come true.

Only you can complete the good work that only You have begun in me.

Nourish my dream however impossible it seems t me now.

Come then my loving Father, You have blessed all my days;

Bless me still as this day ends and the night begins. 

Say All Through The Day

We Rely On The Justice Of Our Loving Father.

Loving Father I know that you are infinitely just, 

but let your very justice that terrifies so many souls

be the source of all my confidence and joy.

Your justice takes into account my good intentions 

as well as my weakness for you know well the frailty of my nature.

What then need I fear? Will not you, the God of Infinite justice,

who deigns to pardon lovingly the sins of the prodigal son

be also just to me? Therefore I hope for as much from your justice

as from your mercy. Come then my loving Father, You have blessed

all my days; bless me still as this day ends and the night begins

Feast Day Novena Prayer

(This prayer is used by the Carmelites during the Feast Day Novena)

St. Therese, Flower of fervour and love, please intercede for us.
Fill our hearts with your pure love of God.
As we approach and celebrate your feast day,
make us more aware of the goodness of
God and how well He tends His garden.
Instil in us your little way of doing
ordinary things with extra-ordinary love.

Give us the heart of a child who wonders
at life and embraces everything with loving enthusiasm.
Teach us your delight in God's ways
so that divine charity may blossom in our hearts.
Little Flower of Jesus, bring our petitions
(mention in silence here)
before God, our Father.

With your confidence, we come before Jesus
as God's children,
because you are our heavenly friend.
As we celebrate the Feast Day of your
homecoming in heaven, continue to
shower roses and grace upon us.

Amen

My Novena Rose Prayer

O Little Therese of the Child Jesus, please pick for me a rose
from the heavenly gardens and send it to me as a message of love.

O Little Flower of Jesus, ask God to grant the favours
I now place with confidence in your hands . .

(mention in silence here)

St. Therese, help me to always believe as you did in
God's great love for me, so that I might imitate your "Little Way" each day.

Amen.

Miraculous Invocation to St. Therese

O Glorious St. Therese,
whom Almighty God has raised up to aid
and inspire the human family,
I implore your Miraculous Intercession.

You are so powerful in obtaining every need
of body and spirit from the Heart of God.
Holy Mother Church proclaims you "Prodigy of Miracles...
the greatest saint of Modern Times."

Now I fervently beseech you to answer my petition
(mention in silence here)
and to carry out your promises of
spending heaven doing good on earth...
of letting fall from Heaven a Shower of Roses.

Little Flower, give me your childlike faith,
to see the Face of God
in the people and experiences of my life,
and to love God with full confidence.

St. Therese, my Carmelite Sister,
I will fulfil your plea "to be made known everywhere"
and I will continue to lead others to Jesus through you.

Amen.