Morning Prayer: “O purify me, then I shall be clean.”

 


“O purify me, then I shall be clean.” This line from morning prayer has been echoing in me today. It’s deceptively simple, almost gentle — yet it names one of the deepest human longings: to be made clean. Not scrubbed, not corrected, not scolded. Purified.

But how does God purify?

Not with bleach. Not with punishment. Not with shame. God purifies the way sunlight purifies a room: by entering it.

Purification, in the spiritual sense, is not about erasing what is wrong with us. It’s about transforming what is wounded in us. God purifies by presence — by entering the places we hide, the places we fear, the places we think are too cluttered or too dark to be worth His attention.

To be purified is to be seen without being condemned.

And what does it mean to be clean?

Clean is not perfection. Clean is alignment. Clean is when the inner life is not at war with itself. Clean is when the heart is not carrying what it was never meant to carry — resentment, self‑loathing, old injuries, secret fears.

Clean is when the soul can breathe again.

When I pray “O purify me,” I’m not asking God to make me flawless. I’m asking Him to make me whole. To wash away the grit that accumulates from living in a world that is both beautiful and bruising. To restore the clarity that gets clouded by worry, fatigue, and the thousand small compromises of daily life.

Purification is God’s work. Willingness is ours. And maybe that’s the quiet miracle of this prayer: the moment we ask for purification, we have already begun to be made clean.


Read more Morning Prayer posts: MSI Press Blog

Note about Morning Prayer: Each morning prayer post reflects on one phrase from the Morning Prayer from the Liturgy of the Hours. which can be found in the iBreviary (a downloadable app), Universalis (website) or Divine Office (publication and website). Post may be assisted by AI in image generation and content (research and/or wording).


Morning Prayer posts inspired by Being Catholic in Troubled Times (Dennis Ortman)


Book Description:

These are times that try our souls. This book is addressed to all, not just Catholics, who search for deeper meaning in tough times. Our age is marked by division and alienation. We long for some message that will bring peace to our world and our hearts.

This book suggests that the Catholic faith can provide strength in these troubled times. The word "catholic" means "all-embracing, universal." Nothing is excluded in the catholic mind. The truth that sets us free can be found everywhere, especially in unexpected places. It is often hidden in plain sight. In our darkest moments, we find new light and life. When we are most despairing, a ray of hope shines through.



Dr. Dennis Ortman, former priest and current psychologist, is the author of Anger Anonymous, Anxiety Anonymous, Depression Anonymous, Being Catholic in Troubled Times, and Life, Liberty, and COVID-19.


For more posts by and about Dennis and his award-winning books, click HERE.



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