A prayer for final perseverance, Mary: Day 364

A prayer for final perseverance

We have no guarantee that if we set out on the journey to heaven, we will arrive in the end. St. Alphonsus fears that he might stumble and fall, so he begs Our Lady to help him to persevere.

Behold at your feet, O Mary, my hope, a poor sinner, who has so many

times been by his own fault the slave of hell. I know that by neglecting to turn to you, my refuge, I allowed myself to be overcome by the Devil. Had I always turned to you, had I always called you, I certainly would not have fallen. I trust, O Lady most worthy of all our love, that through you I have already escaped from the hands of the Devil, and that God has pardoned me. But I tremble at the thought that at some time in the future I may again fall into the same bondage. I know that my enemies have not lost the hope of again overcoming me, and already they prepare new assaults and temptations for me.

My Queen and Refuge, assist me! Place me under your mantle; don’t allow me to become their slave again. I know that you will help me and give me the victory, provided I call on you. But I dread the thought that in my temptations I may forget you, and neglect to do so. The favor, then, that I seek from you, and which you must grant me, O most holy Virgin, is that I may never forget you, and especially in time of temptation. Grant that I may then repeatedly call on you, saying, “O Mary, help me; O Mary, help me!” And when my last strug- gle with hell comes, at the moment of death, then, my Queen, help me more than ever.

May you yourself remind me to call on you more frequently either with my lips or in my heart. In this way, being filled with confidence, I can die with your sweet name and that of your Son, Jesus, on my lips. I will be able to bless you and praise you, and never depart from your feet in paradise, for all eternity. —St. Alphonsus Liguori, The Glories of Mary

IN GOD’S PRESENCE, CONSIDER . .  .

What do I see as the greatest obstacles in my life to my final perseverance in God’s grace? Am I asking Mary’s help to overcome those obstacles?

CLOSING PRAYER

From “Thirty Days’ Prayer to the Blessed Virgin”: Obtain for me, O sacred Mother of God, perseverance in good works, performance of good resolutions, mortification of self-will, a pious conversation through life, and at my last moments, strong and sincere repentance.

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