# Attention Day 6 > Come to Stillness: Take a few minutes to allow your mind and heart to be still before God. ### Opening Prayer: *Lord, I ask for the grace to let go of my own concerns and be open to what you are asking of me, to let myself be guided and formed by my loving Creator. (Sacred Space: the Prayer Book 2010 by Jesuit Communication Centre)* #### Psalm for the Week: Psalm 130 #### My Soul Waits for the Lord #### A Song of Ascents. *130 Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord! 2 O Lord, hear my voice! Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my pleas for mercy! 3 If you, O Lord, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand? 4 But with you there is forgiveness, that you may be feared.5 I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I hope; 6 my soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen for the morning, more than watchmen for the morning.7 O Israel, hope in the Lord!* *For with the Lord there is steadfast love, and with him is plentiful redemption. 8 And he will redeem Israel from all his iniquities.* #### Scripture for the Day: Mark 13:32-37 #### No One Knows That Day or Hour 32 “But concerning that day or that hour, no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 33 Be on guard, keep awake.[a] For you do not know when the time will come. 34 It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his servants[b] in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to stay awake. 35 Therefore stay awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows,[c] or in the morning— 36 lest he come suddenly and find you asleep. 37 And what I say to you I say to all: Stay awake.” #### Reading for Reflection: *Spiritual discernment asks us to pay attention. We need to attend to both what goes on around us and within us. Ideally, this attentiveness goes on much of the time, a sort of low level, constant spiritual sifting of the data of our experience. But there are times when discernment becomes much more focused, when a crossroad is reached or a choice called for. At times like these the cumulative wisdom of tradition tells us to pay attention on many levels: to consult scripture, to seek the advice of trusted advisors, to heed the sensus fidelium (the collective sense of the faithful), to read widely and deeply the best ancient and contemporary thinking, to pray, to attend to the prick of conscience and to the yearnings and dreamings of our hearts, to watch, to wait, to listen. (Passing Angels: The Arts of Spiritual Discernment by Wendy M. Wright from Weavings November/December 1995)* #### Reflection and Listening: silent and written #### Prayer: for the church, for others, for myself #### Song for the Week: O Come, O Come, Emanuel *O come, O come, Emmanuel,* *And ransom captive Israel,* *That mourns in lonely exile here,* *Until the Son of God appear.* *Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel* *Shall come to thee, O Israel.* *O come, thou Rod of Jesse, free* *Thine own from Satan’s tyranny;* *From depths of hell thy people save,* *And give them vict’ry o’er the grave.* *Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel* *Shall come to thee, O Israel.* *O come, thou Dayspring come and cheer* *Our spirits by thy justice here.* *Disperse the gloomy clouds of night,* *And death’s dark shadows put to flight.* *Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel* *Shall come to thee, O Israel.* *O come, thou Key of David, come* *And open wide our heav’nly home;* *Make safe the way that leads on high,* *And close the path to misery.* *Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel* *Shall come to thee, O Israel* ### Closing Prayer *My God, since You are with me, and since it is Your will that I should apply my mind to these outward things, I pray that You will give me the grace to remain with You and keep company with You. But so that my work may be better, Lord, work with me; receive my work and possess all my affections. (The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence)*