April 9

Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, in the power of the Holy Spirit. — Rom 15:13

Gather a shell from the strown beach
And listen at its lips; they sigh
The same desire and mystery,
The echo of the whole sea’s speech.
And all mankind is this at heart—
Not anything but what thou art:
And Earth, Sea, Man are all in each.
— Dante Gabriel Rossetti.

And as, in sparkling majesty, a star
Gilds the bright summit of some glory cloud;
Brightening the half-veil’d face of heaven afar;
So when dark thoughts my boding spirit shroud,
Sweet Hope! celestial influence round me shed,
Waving the silver pinions o’er my head.
— John Keats.

Prayer

Almighty God, may I ever know the generous glow that comes with an overwhelming desire to cultivate the soul. With hope may I find the way through the darkness that leads to immortality, even if I may have to experience the weariness that may accompany it. Amen.