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Written by John Fisher (1469-1535), a bishop, educator, and martyr.

Most loving Father, you command me to love you with all my heart and soul, mind and strength. But I am sure that I do not do so. I know this by reflecting on how I loved others: I loved them to the point of rartely forgetting them. They were constantly present to my memory, my heart dwelt on them almost all the time, and their image ran through my head in their presence as well as in their absence. O loving Father, I regret to say that I do not act this way toward you. I do not keep you in my memory, nor do I have you present in my thoughts, nor is my heart sufficiently occupied with you. As soon as the merest trifle enters my head, I drop you and lose sight of you. As soon as the slightest whim enters my heart, I discard you and quickly forget you..So with all the fervor of my being I ask you to grant me your Holy Spirit who will deliver me from this weakness of mine. Your Holy Spirit will enable me to love you with all my heart and soul, mind and strength, for he is the origin of all true love. Amen.

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. [Deuteronomy 6:5-7]