Pastoral Prayer for February 5, 2023

(Please allow the words of this prayer to become your own.)

God of All That Is Good,

When I look around this world, I see great beauty –

echoes of heaven, evidence of every good and perfect gift.

But I also see terrible pain – broken relationships, abused power,

malnourished children.  And so I pray. . .

May your will be done today, on earth as it is in heaven,

and let it begin with me.

Loving Father, Caring Mother,

grant me strength to be an instrument of your goodness.

Show me what to do and how to do it.

May your will be done today, on earth as it is in heaven,

and let it begin with me.

Give us, your people, the conviction to do more

than just pray your will be done –

as though it were happening outside of us,

and carried out by other people.

Let this be our most heartfelt desire and deepest personal commitment.

Help your church, and me as a part of your church,

to commit to live out the values expressed in Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount.

Yes, may your will be done today, on earth as it is in heaven,

and may it begin with me.  Amen.