The Prayer of St Aidan of Lindisfarne

Leave me alone with God
as much as may be. 
As the tide draws the waters close in 
upon the shore, 
make me an island, set apart, 
alone with You, O God, holy to You. 
Then with the turning of the tide,
 prepare me to carry Your presence 
to the busy world beyond, 
the world that rushes in on me, 
till the waters come again and fold me
back to You. 

Aidan of Lindisfarne

   
From Wikipedia ...

Aidan of Lindisfarne[a] (Irish: Naomh Aodhán; died 31 August 651) was an Irish monk and missionary credited with converting the Anglo-Saxons to Christianity in Northumbria. He founded a ministry cathedral on the island of Lindisfarne, known as Lindisfarne Priory, served as its first bishop, and travelled ceaselessly throughout the countryside, spreading the gospel to both the Anglo-Saxon nobility and the socially disenfranchised (including children and slaves)

This prayer is all about going out in the world to do good … then coming back home to recover, regenerate, revitalize … enjoying being at home … and all that this entails … then returning into the world to continue in doing good … so in a way this prayer is all about a life journey … with suitable time out.

The journey represented metaphorically by the continual motion of the sea. Although it was written in the spiritual life of Lindisfarne centuries ago it has wider context to the way we live our lives. In a physical sense it is not always possible to connect to the wider world when there is water on the causeway.

There are several different texts on the Internet with slight variations in the wording. And the following is an extension to the prayer above …

You alone I follow, Lord Jesus;
You heal my wounds.
For what shall separate me from the love of God,
which is in You? Shall tribulation, or distress,
or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
O Lord Jesus Christ,
I approach Your banquet table in fear and trembling,
for I am a sinner,
and dare not rely on my own worth
but only on Your goodness.
Breathe in me, O Holy Spirit,
that my thoughts may all be holy.
Act in me, O Holy Spirit,
that my work, too, may be holy.
Draw my heart, O Holy Spirit,
that I may love You and serve You faithfully.
Watch, O Lord, with those who wake,
or watch, or weep tonight,
and give Your angels charge over those who sleep.
O Lord Jesus, let me know myself and You,
and desire nothing save only You.
Let me hate myself and love You.
Let me do everything for the sake of You.
For Your mercy’s sake, O Lord my God,
tell me what You are to me. Say to my soul, ‘I am your salvation.’
So speak that I may hear, O Lord; my heart is listening.
You are Christ, my Holy Father, my Tender God, my Great King,
my Good Shepherd, my Only Master, my Best Helper,
my Most Beautiful and my Beloved, my All.”

This is an image from a Stained-Glass window in New York …