SOMETIMES YOUR FAVOURITE PASSAGES OR VERSES OF SCRIPTURE can give you a hint about your Name of Grace. You prepare for this prayer by writing out in your journal your favorite verses or passages from Scripture — those that speak to your heart. They might be from the Old or New Testaments.

Gospel invitations. Your favorite verse of Scripture may be one of the invitations that Jesus addressed to people in the Gospel.

Statements of Jesus like,

“Come, follow me…

“Come and see...”

“Feed my lambs…“

“Launch out into the deep…”

“I shall make fishers of people.“

“Watch and pray…”

Questions like,

“Who do you say that I am?…

“Do you love me?…

“Do you believe that I can do this?…

“What do you want me to do for you?…

“Do you want to be cured?… “

“Leave everything you own and come follow me.”

Choose your favorite invitations of the Lord and begin the exercise:

Imagine you see the risen Lord before you…Then imagine you hear him address to you one of those phrases, for instance, “Come and see…”

Do not respond immediately… Hear him repeat the words again and again… Let the words resound in your whole being…

Keep listening to the words… Let them challenge you, awaken you, provoke you to respond… until you can hold back your response no longer. Then say to the Lord what your heart dictates.

Other verses of Scripture: Your favorite verse of Scripture may be from the Old or New Testaments. For example:

“God you are my God, for you I long. For you my soul is thirsting, like a dry, weary land without water” (Psalm 63).

“Do not be afraid I have redeemed you. I have called you by your name you are mine” (Isaiah 43:1).

“You are precious in my eyes, you are honoured and I love you.” (Isaiah 43:4). “All I want is to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and to share in his sufferings by reproducing the pattern of his death” (Philippians 3:10). “…knowing the love of Christ, which is beyond all knowledge, you are filled with the fullness of God” (Ephesians 3:19).

Listen to the words… Let them challenge you, awaken you, provoke you to response… until you can hold back your response no longer. Then say to God what your heart dictates.

A devout and frequent reading of the Scriptures brings richness to your prayer and to your life. You will gradually discover some passages and phrases through which the Lord seems to communicate with you in a special way. Perhaps this will be an indication of your Name of Grace?

And frequently, in time of distress and need, or joy or solitude, the Lord will say those words again to your heart and make contact with you. And your heart will burn as did the hearts of the disciples of Emmaus when they heard the Lord explain the Scriptures to them.

Questions to reflect on and write about after the prayer:

• What happened in the prayer?
• Do these passages say anything to you about your Name of Grace?

The formulation in words of your Name of Grace sounds very general to those who read it or hear it. What it says, however, to the particular individual whose Name of Grace it is, is unrepeatably unique. The Name of Grace is the unique, God-given meaning in a person’s life. The Name of Grace is the secret unity and integration at the heart level of a whole life precisely because it is the unique God-given meaning in life.