Meditation/prayer based on Mt. 6: 5-14

In the stillness of our time with You, we return seeking your strength and wisdom in shaping our lives. 

For we know that even before we lift our voices, that You know our every need, and of the problems we face in our daily living.  We live in a world of doubt and uncertainty, a place of unbelief, a time of anxiety and uncertainty.  And in this time of constant stress, it is so easy for us to lose the focus of our faith, the center of our belief, and babble meaningless words to ease our minds. So in this time of quiet and peace, help us in silence to turn to You knowing that You are there, and that You hear our every word.  It is in Your presence that we can begin to heal from the wounds of another week.

And it was in the teaching of your Son that we have learned how to turn to you in prayer.  For you are with us in the quiet of our own space, in the time we spend with you in secret.  And so it is this morning that we pray in silence, knowing as your children that You hear our every word.  We turn our hearts and our souls to You, knowing of Your kindness and grace, Your constant love for each of us.

So help us this morning once again in learning how to love one another, to share in one another’s burdens, to listen to each other’s pain and sorrow, to share with each other’s joys and accomplishments.  We Your children are here to carry our your ministry of love for all, and are the voice of justice and peace in a troubled world.   Help us to be different from a world that seeks revenge and retribution, and that we learn to love those who are our enemies.  We hope to live out the lesson that Jesus brought to us, to forgive those who would harm us, to have empathy for those are troubled. 

We ask that you help us to serve those around us, those who come to us hungry, or homeless, or without family or friends. Let us not be like the hypocrites standing on street corners announcing our prayers for public display, but instead help us to bring our concerns to you in secret, in the quiet stillness of our own private space.  Grant that we might be the voice that brings the peace of prayer to the lives of others.  You have created us to fulfill your purpose, and we are newly committed in this quiet moment to living out our faith.