# Conversation with Jesus in the Tabernacle
*2016-04-10*

> Bill Young reflects on the feast of St. Magdalene and shares a heartfelt prayer of St. Thérèse of Lisieux, inviting listeners to unite their daily struggles with Christ in the tabernacle.

## Feast of St. Magdalene

Good morning, this is Bill Young{...}welcome to Prayer at Lunch. Today is Sunday, April 10th, the feast day of St. Magdalene of Canossa. She was born into a wealthy family in the early 19th century, yet she gave up her privilege to serve the poor. She founded the Sisters of Charity, opening her home to young girls and working in hospitals and schools.

## St. Thérèse’s Prayer in the Tabernacle

We now turn to a beautiful prayer of St. Thérèse of Lisieux, “Conversation with Jesus in the Tabernacle.”

"O God, hidden in the tabernacle, I return to you each evening to thank you for the graces you have given me and to implore your pardon for the failures of this day, which slips away like a dream. O Jesus, how happy I would be if I had been faithful, yet I am sad this evening because I feel I could have responded better to your grace. Still, O my God, far from being discouraged by my unworthiness, I come to you with trust, remembering that the sick need the doctor, not the healthy. I beseech you to hear me, to forgive me, and to remember, Lord, that the soul for whom you have forgiven more must love you more than others. I offer you all my heartbreaks together with many acts of love and reparation, uniting them with your infinite merits. I ask earnestly, O my Divine Spouse, that you may be the doctor of my soul, working within me despite my resistance, that I may have no will other than yours. Tomorrow, by the help of your grace, I will begin anew; may every moment be an act of love. Thank you."

## Reflection

St. Thérèse reminds us that each evening is an opportunity to examine our day, to thank God for his gifts, and to ask for mercy for our shortcomings. She models a trust that does not shrink from our unworthiness but leans into the Doctor’s healing love. As we close, let us carry this spirit of honest conversation with Jesus into our own lives, especially as we approach the tabernacle in prayer.

*Even in our failures, we are invited to return to Jesus with trust, allowing Him to be the doctor of our souls.*