Lost Prayers #16

Prayers Before Communion, Part 1

Act of Right Intention

My dear Redeemer, it is not from custom or human respect that I come to receive Thee: but it is solely to love and be united to Thee, to live by Thee and for Thee, to be delivered from my miseries and to clothe myself with Thy virtues, to strengthen myself against my enemies; it is to ask from Thee the exaltation of the Church, Thy beloved spouse, the conversion of sinners, perseverance for the just, and deliverance for the poor souls in purgatory. Purify more and more my intentions, rectify them, O my Jesus, render them conformable to Thine; this is my sole desire.

Act of Faith

Lord Jesus, eternal and infallible Truth, since Thou has said that Thou art really present in the holy Eucharist, I believe it firmly. Yes, this host which I see, and which I am to receive, is not bread, but the living body of Jesus Christ, God and man; it is the God Whom the angels adore in heaven; I believe it. I do not understand this mystery, but I wish to believe it without seeking to penetrate it, that I may have the happiness of seeing and contemplating it one day in heaven. Strengthen my weakness, increase my faith, render it so lively, that I may honor Thee, love Thee, and receive Thee, as if I already beheld Thee.

Act of Adoration

I adore Thee, O my God present in the holy Eucharist, as my Creator, my Preserver, and my Redeemer. I offer Thee all that I have, all that I am, all that depends on me; I offer Thee my mind to think of Thee, my heart to love Thee; my will to serve Thee; my body to labor and suffer for Thy love. I am Thine, I give myself to Thee, I consecrate myself to Thee, I abandon myself to Thee, I wish to live and die for love of Thee.

Act of Confidence

My soul, dilate thy heart; thy Jesus can give thee every good gift; He loves thee ardently. Hope, then, for great favors from this Lord, Who, through an impulse of love, comes to thee all love. Yes, my Jesus, my hope, I trust in Thy goodness, that in giving Thyself to me this morning, Thou wilt kindle in my poor soul the flames of Thy pure love, and of an ardent desire to please Thee, that, from this day forward, I may wish only what Thou wishest.

From The Treasury of the Sacred Heart, 1878