Oct 1.99: Light For The Day - "Sweet Fire, Sweet Flames."

"And hope does not disappoint us,
because God's love has been poured into
our hearts through the Holy Spirit which has
been given to us."
-- Romans 5:5 (RSV)

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Great God, how I love you; O, how I love you!
I feel myself burning; you are the fire that burns me.
O pain, O infinitely happy pain of love!
O sweet fire! O sweet flames!

You, O sweet LORD, have set my heart ablaze.
Your fire destroys my sinful self, reducing it to ashes.
Stop, stop! I cannot pull myself away from such fire.
No, let me stay! Let the fire consume me.

Come, LORD Jesus! My heart is now open to you.
All the sin that encrusted my heart is reduced to ashes.
Let your holy body take the place of my sinful body.
Let your Holy Spirit infuse my spirit.

-- Gemma Galgani

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"The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and
the love of God and the fellowship of
the Holy Spirit be with you all."
-- 2 Corinthians 13:14 (RSV)