Bless us with Thy intoxicating, ever-new, joyous, supremely satisfying contact.
Teach us to drink Thee, that every blood cell, every thought, and every feeling
may become saturated with Thy joy and have their pleasure-thirst quenched
forever.
After tasting Thee, lead us to temptation if Thou wilt.
After we are sure of Thy most tempting, everlasting gift of Thyself,
then test us with all Thy temptations if Thou wilt.
Teach us by comparison between felicity and sense distraction to completely
remove, of our own accord, all material pleasures from our hearts.
Bless us first with the light of Godly habits, so that whenever the darkness of bad
habits approaches, it will be spontaneously driven away.
Teach us to forsake the misery-making ignorant ways of living by letting us know
and feel the comforting ways of wise living.
Teach us to be so attached to Thee that we can not be at all attracted to
material pleasures.
Teach us by Thy love to conquer all loves for worldly life.
Millions do not love Thee because they know not of Thy alluring Love.
Millions love matter because they meet it first.
Divine Beloved, why dost Thou not come first in human life?
Oh, Father, how canst Thou expect frail Souls, ignorant of Thee and burdened with bad habits, to know Thy all-healing Joy.
Of all Thy punishments, forgetfulness of Thee is greatest.
Punish us not, therefore, with forgetfulness.
No matter what our tests may be, teach us to bear them joyously by feeling Thy Presence all the time in our hearts.
For the knowledge of Thy Presence in the heart makes all our tragedies and comedies of life but dramas of extremely ecstatic entertainment.
— From East-West Magazine, August 1933