Based on the writing of St. Francis de Sales
Dearest Jesus,
King of Divine Mercy,
I place myself in your holy presence,
And I beseech you to inspire in me
By the power of the Holy Spirit.
Give me your light,
And give me sight,
That I may gain
A perfect knowledge
Of myself.
With St. Augustine,
I cry out to you,
“Lord, let me know you,
And let me know myself!”
And with St. Francis,
I humbly ask you,
“Lord! Who are you,
And who am I?”
I protest that I do not wish
To learn of my progress
In order to rejoice in myself,
But solely to rejoice in you, dear God,
Because I do not wish to glorify myself,
But I only wish to glorify you, dear Lord,
And give you thanks.
I also protest that if I find,
As I fear I shall,
That I have made only a little progress,
Or none at all,
Or even that I have fallen backward,
I will not on that account
Be depressed or made cold
By discouragement or despondency
Of any sort.
On the contrary,
I protest that I wish to encourage
And animate myself all the more,
I wish to humble myself,
And I wish to correct my faults
By the assistance of your grace.
Amen.