28,430 drops. That is how many drops of Precious Blood Our Divine Savior shed for us during His Passion.
Devotion to the Most Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ is one of the oldest devotions in the Church. Our Blessed Mother first adored the Most Precious Blood of her infant Son on the day of His circumcision as He shed the first drops of His Precious Blood amongst many tears for our salvation.
The Church devotes the month of July to the Most Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus and we celebrate the traditional feast on July 1. On this day and throughout the month of July, the Church encourages us to meditate on the profound sacrifice of Jesus and the pouring out of His blood for humanity.
Before developing a devotion to something, it is important to know that true devotion is three-dimensional.
First, it requires veneration and giving due worship and reverence to the object of said devotion.
Second, true devotion entails invocation or verbalization of that which we wish to be devoted to. For instance, reciting the Litany of the Most Precious Blood of Jesus is an example of an invocation.
Third, true devotion must be fused with imitation. For example, if you have a devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary, you will aspire to imitate her ten principal virtues and holy dispositions.
With this in mind, in what way can we then foster a most tender devotion to the Most Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus this month of July and onwards?
Here are five suggestions that, God willing, will deepen your devotion to the Precious Blood of Our Lord and immerse you into His Holy Wounds from which flowed 28,430 drops of His Most Precious Blood during His Passion:
1. Start small with bite-size prayers!
There are many to choose from. This is a top favorite: “Most Precious Blood of Jesus Christ, save us and the whole world!”
Aim to pray it 250 times a day.
Using a Holy Rosary, pray 50 upon rising in the morning. This will help you keep track of your recitations.
Before your day’s work, recite another 50.
Right before your lunch, pray 50 more.
Before your dinnertime, recite another 50.
Finally, as part of your night prayer, pray 50 more of “Most Precious Blood of Jesus Christ, save us and the whole world!”
Pray it with confidence, devotion, and humility. In this way, not only will you foster a continual lifting up of your heart to God through your day, but you will actually consecrate every segment of your day to the Most Precious Blood of Jesus Christ.
In turn, Our Beloved Savior will perpetually pour His Precious Blood into your soul and transform you into Himself.
2. Recite the Litany!
Strive to pray the Litany of the Most Precious Blood of Jesus each evening aloud before bed. Audibly hearing invocations of the Precious Blood of Christ will transform your soul.
Meditate upon his blood falling upon the earth in the Agony, shedding profusely in the Scourging, flowing forth in the Crowning with Thorns, poured out on the Cross, and as Eucharistic drink and refreshment of souls.
You may find an entire list of Litanies here.
3. Join the Association!
The Association of the Most Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ is an association of lay faithful in more than 40 countries that promotes devotion to the Precious Blood of Our Lord. The Association recommends using this daily devotional to meditate on the Most Precious Blood of Jesus.
4. Love Divine Mercy!
Within each decade of the well-known and loved Divine Mercy Chaplet, there are a myriad of opportunities to meditate on the Most Precious Blood.
Here are a few:
- First decade: Ponder on the right Hand of Our Lord and the Precious Blood that flowed from it during His Passion. Pray for God’s mercy on you for your sins, meditate on the day thus far, and ask for opportunities to love God and your neighbor more.
- Second decade: Meditate on the left Hand of Our Lord and, similarly, His Precious Blood that flowed from it. Pray for all sinners.
- Third decade: Gaze at Our Lord’s right foot and the Precious Blood which flowed from it while praying for all priests and religious.
- Fourth decade: Fix your attention on Our Lord’s left foot and the Precious Blood which gushed forth from it. Reflect on the souls in purgatory and offer every drop of blood that flowed from it for them.
- Fifth decade: Imagine the Sacred Heart of Our Lord and the drops of Precious Blood that gushed forth when the lance pierced through it. During the Divine Mercy Chaplet’s mention of “O Blood and Water, which gushed forth from the Heart of Jesus as a fount of mercy for us, I trust in You,” gaze upon His Heart and offer Him your love and your homage.
Ask for your own heart to be a nest for His Love and His Most Precious Blood. Most importantly on this fifth decade, offer the Most Precious Blood of Jesus for the intentions of all your loved ones.
5. Precious Blood Chaplet!
Continuing on from the Divine Mercy Chaplet, a top choice for daily recitation is the Chaplet of the Most Precious Blood of Jesus Christ.
To assist you in praying it, consider investing in the Precious Blood Chaplet from the EWTN Religious Catalogue. There are countless spiritual blessings Our Lord promises for those who faithfully recite the Chaplet of the Most Precious Blood, so this devotion will ignite your spiritual life.
Here’s how to recite the aforementioned Chaplet of the Most Precious Blood of Jesus in the video below:
Let us conclude with the final prayer of the Litany of the Most Precious Blood of Jesus:
Almighty and eternal God, you have appointed your only-begotten Son the Redeemer of the world, and willed to be appeased by his Blood.
Grant we beg of you, that we may worthily adore this price of our salvation, and through its power be safeguarded from the evils of the present life, so that we may rejoice in its fruits forever in heaven.
Through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.
Most Precious Blood of Jesus Christ, save us and the whole world!