Somewhere in my spiritual meandering I read or heard about praying with open hands; I’ve used this image ever since, especially during the Our Father of the Mass. It goes something like this:
I open my hands. In my hands I place all my treasures: the people I love, my sense of myself, my work and the reasons I do it, my hopes, and whatever else happens to be on my mind. And God looks over my offerings and accepts them with a smile. And sometimes God says, “Do you mind if I put in another bit?” And I say, “Of course not, Lord. That’s why I’m praying with open hands.” And once in a while, God asks, “Do you mind if I take this away?” And I take a deep breath, or several, and answer, “Of course not, Lord. That’s why I’m praying with open hands.”
This form of prayer has an amen; St. Ignatius wrote it: “Give me only your love and your grace. That is enough for me.”
– Blog entry by Sister Paula Gero