An Instrument of Your Peace: Prayer of Saint Francis of Assisi

From the Inside Flap
We all need help and encouragement to become channels of God's blessing, to sow love and forgiveness to those around us, and to be beacons of hope and light in a dark and confusing world.This collection of inspiring poems by one of America's favorite poets, Helen Steiner Rice, follows the timeless themes expressed in the prayer of St. Francis of Assisi. The themes-peace, love, pardon, faith, hope, joy-blend perfectly with the positive outlook, the concern for others, and the love of God that ring out through the poetry. Each poem is accompanied by John Ruthven's wildlife illustrations, an appropriate verse from Scripture, and a meditative thought from editor Virginia Ruehlmann. A C.D. in the back of this book will further delight you with ten relaxing songs and a reading of St. Francis's prayer. An Instrument of Your Peace makes a handsome gift for anyone who loves nature or needs an encouraging reminder that God's love surrounds us and shapes us each day. In the 1920s, when Helen Steiner Rice's greetings began appearing in national magazines, she became the unofficial poet laureate for Americans seeking hope and optimism. Her work helped readers through the Great Depression and was broadcast nationally the evening after President John F. Kennedy was shot. Since her death in 1981, her books have sold nearly seven million copies, including the popular volumes A Book of Thanks and God's Promises from A to Z. Virginia J. Ruehlmann works with her husband Eugene to continue the legacy of their friend through the Helen Steiner Rice Foundation. Mrs. Ruehlmann has compiled some fifty volumes of Mrs. Rice's inspirational poetry. Artist, naturalist, author, and lecturer John A. Ruthven is also known as the "Twentieth Century Audobon" for his detailed renderings of wildlife. His work has been unveiled in institutions around the world-from the Ohio State Capitol Rotunda to The White House and The Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia. Disillusioned with life by a bitter and bloody war, the wealthy and once scrupulous Francis of Assisi (1182-1226) searched for answers and peace. In an irrevocable encounter, Francis met another soldier, Jesus-the Prince of Peace-and forever changed his life. Francis renounced his wealth, traveled across country to proclaim his faith, and preached a lifestyle of peace and harmony with God, his creatures, and all mankind.

From the Back Cover
Like the illuminated manuscripts of Saint Francis of Assisi's time, this inspiring collection of poetry by Helen Steiner Rice imparts beauty and truth on every page. More than 50 poems by a woman well-acquainted with turbulence and distress are woven together with the comforting revelation of Scripture and the intricately detailed painting of internationally-acclaimed artist and naturalist John A. Ruthven. Foxes, birds, rabbits, and butterflies dance in and out of Mrs. Rice's poems and the saint's famous prayer that she loved so much-Lord, make me an instrument of your peace. Indeed, Mrs. Rice shared Mr. Ruthven's and Saint Francis of Assisi's affinity for God's creatures great and small. Like St. Francis, she devoted her life to helping people find hope, faith, and love in the midst of brokenness and turmoil. In her final years she wrote often of God's beauty seen in the gardens of the St. Claire convent below her fifth floor windows at the Mercy Franciscan Terrace in Cincinnati, Ohio. "If we could just lift our hearts like flowers to the sun," she reflected, "and trust His loving promise and pray, 'Thy will be done,' we'd find the peace we're seeking."

About the Author
Helen Steiner Rice exemplified a life of hope and optimism. Her popular books, including A Book of Thanks, Blossoms of Friendship, and Heart Gifts, have sold nearly seven million copies. Virginia J. Ruehlmann has compiled more than thirty books using Mrs. Rice's inspirational poems. She lives in Cincinnati, Ohio. John Ruthven is known internationally as a master of wildlife art.


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