God, may my love be genuine.
May I let go what is evil in me,
and open myself to what is good.
By your Spirit in me May I truly love others:
not just to tolerate them but to honor them.
Give me your zeal, your energy, the true desire to serve you.
Give me the faith to rejoice with hope,
to be patient in suffering, and to persevere in prayer.
Help me take the opportunities I will have today
to contribute to the needs of those around me…
to extend hospitality to strangers…
to bless those who oppose me— to bless and not to curse them.
I am mindful of those who rejoice, and I rejoice with them.
I am mindful of those who weep, and I weep with them.
May I be present for them today.
Give me your grace to live this day in harmony with others.
I do not need to pretend that I am wiser than I am.
Help me not to be haughty
but to know that the lowly are my peers.
Give me grace to not repay evil for evil,
but to focus on what is good for the sake of all.
Give me grace to live peaceably with all.
Give me your grace to feed the hungry even if they oppose me,
to give drink to the thirsty even if I do not like them.
I pray that I will not be overcome by evil,
but that I may overcome evil with good,
by the grace of your love in me.
Amen
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Steve Garnaas-Holmes
Unfolding Light
www.unfoldinglight.net
August 26, 2020