St. Augustine of Hippo wrote this prayer around 400 AD, during the years when he was reshaping the Church’s understanding of grace and conversion. If you feel spiritually cold this morning, or sense a hardness in your heart toward God or neighbor, this prayer asks for exactly what Augustine himself needed: the Holy Spirit’s fire to melt what is frozen.
O Lord, who hast mercy upon all, take away from me my sins, and mercifully kindle in me the fire of thy Holy Spirit. Take away from me the heart of stone, and give me a heart of flesh, a heart to love and adore thee, a heart to delight in thee, to follow and to enjoy thee, for Christ’s sake. Amen.
St. Augustine of Hippo, c. 400 AD
How this prayer works
Augustine is asking for two movements: the removal of sin and the kindling of the Spirit’s fire. The “heart of stone” language comes from Ezekiel 36:26, where God promises to replace Israel’s hardened hearts with living, responsive ones. Augustine knew this promise personally: he spent years resisting God’s grace before his conversion at age 31.
The prayer builds from negative to positive. First, take away sin and the stony heart. Then, give a heart that can love, adore, delight, follow, and enjoy God. That final verb matters. Augustine believed the Christian life is not grim duty but deep joy in the presence of the One who made us.
Pray it slowly before you begin your day, especially if you notice yourself going through the motions. The Spirit’s fire is not mere emotion, but the power to love what you should love and delight in what is truly delightful. Carry it through this morning.
