Wednesday, April 1, 2026
Wednesday of Holy Week
The Gospels tell us about the Agony in the Garden, which takes place after the Last Supper on the night before the crucifixion, in which Jesus prays through his anxiety.
“My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me; yet, not as I will, but as you will.” (Matthew 26:39). He returns to pray this same prayer three times, always ending the same way: “your will be done!” (Mt 26:42); “not what I will but what you will.” (Mk 14:36).
We’ve been taught since childhood about not only Jesus’s acceptance of the sacrifice, but of his acceptance of his Father’s will.
Today for reflection, I share with you The Suspice. This powerful prayer, from the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius, enlivens that same acceptance of God’s will.
As the joke says: Man plans, and God laughs.
But how hard it is to pray, willingly - “Hey, God, laugh at my plan!! Let your plan take shape.”
First, here is the text of the prayer, translated from St. Ignatius’s original writing:
Take Lord, and receive
all my liberty,
my memory,
my understanding,
and my entire will,
all that I have and possess.
Thou hast given all to me.
To Thee, O lord, I return it.
All is Thine, dispose of it wholly according to Thy will.
Give me Thy love and thy grace, for this is sufficient for me.
But even more so, I suggest the song version “These Alone Are Enough” by Dan Schutte found below.
Take a few moments in silence today, and this week, to meditate on this music:
“Hey, God, laugh at my plan!! Let your plan take shape.”