The Prayer of Hope
Intercession is the prayer of hope. I begin with Christ’s victory: He has conquered sin, all evil, death, and desires to grant everyone the gift of His resurrected life. When I see difficulties, suffering, and unsolvable, hopeless situations, I ask Christ to bring His victory into these circumstances. This can be done in the following steps:
✢ I place myself in God’s presence. (See above.)
✢ I praise God for the gifts of creation and redemption.
✢ From this perspective, I look at the situations I want to pray for. I bring these before Jesus and ask Him to manifest His victory in these areas.
✢ Finally, I thank Christ for all that He does, even for what I cannot yet see.
The rosary is an excellent tool for this. During this Advent season, we especially recommend the first two joyful mysteries:
✢ “Whom you, O Virgin, conceived by the Holy Spirit” – I ask Our Lady to help me open my heart to receive Christ’s presence more deeply in my life.
✢ “Whom you, O Virgin, carried in visiting Elizabeth” – I ask Our Lady to help me carry Christ to every place I visit.