Sirach 51: 12-27  Mark 11:27-33 
 
Holy Spirit of Jesus, help me seek your wisdom until the end …
 
It is one thing to say you know God, holiness and Wisdom.  It is another thing altogether to live into wisdom day by day, hour by hour.  This requires discipline, persistence and a commitment to giving time to ‘show up’ to seek “Wisdom”, which is the understanding of God’s holiness.  Only then will I be prepared to answer the life questions Jesus presents us with. Holy Spirit of Jesus, help me see your wisdom until the end. 
                                                                                                                           
 
For I resolved to live according to wisdom, and I was zealous for the good, and I shall never be disappointed. (Sirach 51:18) 
                                                                                                      
Soli ad gloriam dei
 

Sirach 44:1-13 & Mark 11:11-25
 
Holy Spirit of Jesus, help me clean out the ‘outer courts’ of my being .
 
One evening Jesus had a look around the courtyards of the temple, at the mess left behind after a busy day marketing sacrificial animals.  A few days later he systematically went through the market place, throwing tables and inventory, vendors and customers alike into chaos, speaking scripture: “My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations!” 
If my being is truly the temple of the Holy Spirit, shouldn’t the ‘outer courts’ of my being be similarly cleared of the clutter and soiling of my own selfish ambitions? In this way, like the outer courts of the temple of Jerusalem, my life will be ready to welcome many into the heart of the love and truth of the Holy Spirit of God.  Holy Spirit of Jesus, help me clean out the ‘outer courts’  of my being.  
 
 
The Lord speaks of peace to his people and his holy ones, and those who turn to him. (Psalm 84) 
                                                                                                      
Soli ad gloriam dei

Sirach36: 1- 22 & Psalm 79
 
Being protected from bodily and emotional harm is important, and the Lord is always eager to protect us from injury.  But it is vital to be delivered from that which would inject us with the poison of shame and guilt, or draw our souls  into eternal separation from  Love and Truth found only within Creator, Son and Holy Spirit .  What are my sins, that I need to be delivered from? 
Holy Spirit of God, deliver me and forgive my sins.   
 
 
Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of your name. (Psalm 79)
                                                                                                      
Soli ad gloriam dei

Sirach 35:1-15 & Mark 10: 28-31
 
Just as the foundations for a building must be firm, level and able to bear much weight, so the foundations of my life must just as carefully be constructed.  When I try to build my life on fame, success, and getting or doing everything I can, the foundation will be uneven and poorly engineered. Only God’s commandments of compassionate love, true justice and faith-fullness can support the weight, the weather and the wide variety of stresses that daily life impresses upon me. To ‘keep’ God’s commandments requires discipline and sacrifice, but in the end, I am able to offer back my well-being to the Lord and his people, an offering of faith, hope and love that fulfills his purposes for my life.  Holy Spirit of God, help me make an offering of well-being by keeping your commandments.   
 
 
Gather to me my faithful ones, who made a covenant with me by sacrifice. (Psalm 50)  
                                                                                                      
Soli ad gloriam dei
 

Sirach17:24-29 & Mark 10: 17-27 
 
Iniquity, or that which is not just, is fascinating to the human soul. Perhaps I do not murder, commit adultery or withhold food from the hungry, but there are more subtle ways I enter into iniquity.  Like a simple apple in the creation story that captured the interest of Adam and Eve, so simple gifts - our possessions, our jobs or our financial securities - gain our attention and unjustifiably divert our hearts, minds and strength away from the riches of the fruit of the Holy Spirit. Holy Spirit of God, help me to turn away from iniquity to You. 
 
 
You are a hiding place for me; you preserve me from trouble; you surround me with glad cries of deliverance. (Psalm 32) 
                                                                                                      
Soli ad gloriam dei