Dear God, send to me visitors, let them knock at my door seeking food and warmth. Let me greet them with cheer, build them a fire, feed them from my table.

Let me be hospitable, Lord, even as my supplies slip away. When my garden grows bare and still I welcome these guests sent by you – this is my way to show my devotion.

Let me share the bread made from my last flour, Lord.

(Letter #1,506)

Dear God, if my life is abundant, what then must be my experience? Do I sit idle among heaps of treasure? Do I walk through bountiful orchards while blind to the fruit that needs picking? This throng of fellows, do I shut myself away from them, barring the door against disturbance?

Lord, you give us your creatures abundance. I therefore am called to act. You offer so many gifts of which to partake.

Why, then, do I hide in my closet and shun even the lightest obligation? These chores I am called to do are markers of ecstasy.

Today, Lord, let me laugh with joy at all my duties. You bless me with obligation, you lovingly allow me to express devotion through my effort.

O! Let me be a joyful servant in this house of abundance.

(Letter #1,505)

Dear God, let me pray continually.

(Letter #1,504)

Dear God, you stand ready to aid me, you array forces in my favor. Yet I blind myself to them, keeping my sight on my plodding feet.

Lord, breathe air into my spine, straighten my posture. Let my eyes scan the horizon. Nothing to fear there. These hosts are yours, coming to meet me.

I thought I heard thunder, dear God, and it frightened me. It was the hooves of the ones you sent to rescue me.

Let me welcome the trembling ground.

(Letter #1,503)