Prayer for Today

 

Please pray for Jamaica, Cuba, and all in the path of Hurricane Melissa.

A prayer for World Peace from 1978

 

We pray for the power to be gentle;
the strength to be forgiving;
the patience to be understanding;
and the endurance to accept the consequences
of holding on to what we believe to be right.

May we put our trust in the power of good to overcome evil
and the power of love to overcome hatred.

We pray for the vision to see and the faith to believe
in a world emancipated from violence,
a new world where fear shall no longer lead men or women to commit injustice,
nor selfishness makes them bring suffering to others.

Help us to devote our whole life and thought and energy
to the task of making peace,
Praying always for the inspiration and the power
to fulfill the destiny for which we and all men and women were created.

 

Notice this is a personal and communal prayer.  You could substitute the word “we” to “I” above.  I pray for power to be gentle (I love that paradoxical phrase and the counter-cultural idea that power can be gentle); for the strength to be forgiving (again, forgiveness as strong rather than weak); for patience or curiosity to understand.  Where is there a situation in your life where you feel the holy nudge to be gentle, forgiving, and understanding?

 

Which words of the prayer above caught your attention?  Were there words that caused your shoulders to tense or your stomach to turn?  Were there parts of the prayer your inner defense attorney objected to?  Were there moments your shy soul said, “Amen”?  Re-read the prayer again at some point today to see how the words land in you at that time.  And may peace be planted in your heart and alive in your life this week.  Amen.