by Ken Sande
“A primary qualification
for serving God
with any amount of success,
and for doing God’s work well
and triumphantly,
is a sense
of our own weakness.”
C. H. Spurgeon
Oh Lord God,
today I am called
to be a peacemaker,
but I am unfit
for the task.
By nature
I am a peace-faker
and a peace-breaker,
so I myself
need help.
Others ask me to understand
and guide them,
but my ears are dull,
my eyes are dim,
and I lack the wisdom
they need.
But you, Lord,
have all they need,
so I come to you
for supply.
Make me fit
for your purposes,
so I might serve them
and honor you.
Cleanse me
from my own sin,
so I will not add
to their problems;
take the logs
from my eyes
so I can remove the specks
from theirs.
Fill me with your Spirit,
so they may benefit
from your fruit:
love,
joy,
peace,
kindness,
goodness,
faithfulness,
gentleness
and self-control.
Give me wisdom
from above,
so I might be pure
and peace-loving,
considerate
and submissive,
full of mercy
and good fruit,
impartial
and sincere.
Open your Word
to my eyes
and to my heart,
so I will have a steady lamp
to light our path.
Strip me
of my own agenda
and desires,
so I might look only
to others’ good
and be absolutely worthy
of their trust.
Help me to model
everything I teach,
so others can see
the way.
Give me humility
to admit my weaknesses
and confess my wrongs,
so others might do the same.
Draw me again and again
into prayer,
where you can strengthen
and correct me.
Make me submissive —
help me to show
that I myself
am under authority.
Help me to treat others
as I want to be treated,
so they may see
the essence of your Law.
Make me creative,
versatile,
and adaptable,
so I can adjust
to the surprises ahead.
Help me to
accept others
as you have accepted me,
and thus bring praise
to your name.
Give me faith
and perseverance,
so I will not doubt
your provision
or abandon
your principles,
even when others
fight against them.
Grant me the gift
of encouragement,
to give others hope
and help them believe
that our labor
is not in vain.
Help me to model your forgiveness,
so relationships are healed
and your Gospel is revealed.
Grant me discernment
so that I may
read the deep waters
of others’ hearts,
sort fiction from fact,
and know when it’s time
to act.
Give me boldness
and courage,
tempered with kindness,
to confront others
in love,
so they might see
their errors
and find their way
back to you.
Help me to prepare
thoroughly
and not presume
upon your grace.
Make me just
and fair,
so that even if people
disagree with my counsel
they will believe
that I treated them well.
In short,
Father,
please give me
the Spirit of Christ,
so that I might
walk in his steps
and guide your people
into the path of your peace.