By Stephen Smith
As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience.
O Gracious and Loving Creator, we bow before your throne of Grace. You created us, you know us better than we know ourselves, you see our faults and our shortcomings, yet you love us and invite us to help you build the Peaceable Kin-dom of God.
We see harmony in the universe that you created. We see the springtime flowers and the plants growing. We hear the frogs and the birds—especially as they sing in the joy of the morning. We see your heavenly bodies as they live in mutual community.
We also see violence in your creation, violence that creates and allows life, intelligent life, life that begins to know you and learn your ways, death with life, destruction with creation, evil with rightful living. You give us life with choice, to abuse or to bless.
And we see ourselves, this part of your creation. We abuse your creation and each other. We destroy the beauty around us, we destroy each other. We are filled with greed, we crave to dominate, we fail to love.
And yet, you call us. You invite us to help you build the Peaceable Kin-dom of God on this earth, among humanity, with each other, including all the other life you have placed here. Give us a desire for peace. Place in us the nagging spirit of vision that recognizes abuse and brings healing. Grant us the courage to act like your children, like brothers and sisters who care. Help us feel your love and express your love.
Help us imagine the Peaceable Kin-dom of God into being. Help us make that Kin-dom visible. Here. Now. This is our prayer.
Amen.
Prayer Phrase
“…we will reap at harvest time, if we do not give up” (Galatians 6:9).
Weeding the Garden
Inner transformation can take place among daily leisure and work. Try cultivating the spiritual discipline of grace and acceptance while weeding the garden. As you pull each weed, offer a short prayer. Tug. (God remove from my heart all prejudice and fear.) Tug again. (God, keep me from judging others.) As you remove the weeds, continue praying. (Plant in my heart the seeds of your love.) If you don’t have a garden, try this transforming prayer while engaging in repetitive tasks or work today (cleaning out a closet, washing dishes, cleaning the floors, mowing the lawn).
Today’s Prayer for Peace
Engage in a daily practice of praying for peace in our world. Click here to read today’s prayer and be part of this practice of peace.