You know the way for me
You know the time
Into your hands
I trustingly place mine 
Your plan is perfect 
Born of perfect love
You know the way for me
 That is enough 

Reflections written by Schoenstatt members 
         
 November 2019
 
            Mary’s hands, so delicate, so pure, so gentle, so strong; they were broken. I heard the fall and the crash as her statue fell from her perch in the room. One of the culprits fished her out from her new resting place with a look of horror as the realization came that where her hands once were, was now sharp and jagged ceramic. With pursed lips and a large sigh, I grabbed her to assess the damage to those wonderful, beautiful hands. I wanted to get angry and cry at the same time. I glanced to the floor, immediately spying those perfect prayer hands hiding in the carpet. I placed the hands back on the statue and it was a perfect fit, a clean break. The frustrated ire was still sitting just below the surface as I made my way into the kitchen. I opened the junk drawer in search of the super glue and a childish giggle seemed to arise from somewhere in the depths of my soul. They’re just hands; hands that are insignificant if the intent behind holding them in a prayerful manner isn’t reflected upon. And as always, the question comes soon thereafter; “Do you really think these hands are needed to pray?” No, I don’t. That simple question and even simpler answer was enough to quiet the storm below the surface and send my mind into a reflective stroll, of sorts.
            Our hands are an extension of our hearts, as are our eyes and words and actions and thoughts and so many other things that we possess or do almost involuntarily. What do the intentions of our hearts look like when viewed from a purely outsider perspective? Are we charitable with our time, money, talents, or words? Do we fulfill our duties faithfully and without question of if it is enough? Is loving a top priority, even if it is tough love, forgiving love, uncomfortable love, self-sacrificing love, that we are called to give? Are we reflecting on our actions and thoughts by spending time with the Lord and do we accept and embrace His teaching of our beauty and our flaws? Do we greet the Lord in the Eucharist with reverence and humility by understanding that His sacrifice is a gift that we did nothing to deserve; He gave it to us freely while knowing our sinfulness?  It seems this list of questioning could go on forever and we haven’t even gotten into the intentions of our hearts from an interior perspective or if either of them even matter depending on the intentions of our hearts to the Lord.
                Lord, as we come to You with hands folded in prayer like our Mother, I ask that you take them and make them Yours. Take too, our feet, our ears, our eyes, our mouths, our minds, and our hearts. I pray that if we are unwilling or unable to surrender any part of ourselves to You that You would allow us to be rid of it. For anything that is not Yours is evil and will not produce the fruit You desire. Incline our hearts to Your will so that in our prayers and deeds, Your name will be adored and glorified. Give us the grace to persevere in Your cleansing fire so that our intentions might be pure and Your will might be done in us and through us. Amen.
                                                                                          Submitted by an anonymous Schoenstatt  member