Teach Me and Guide Me, Lord.

 Heavenly Father, 

I do say I follow Christ,

I am most sincere when I say it,

But sometimes I find myself rushing in,

     determined to fix situations You need to fix,

     situations You can fix much better than I.

But in my foolishness  and in my vainness

     I am so sure that I can do more than I am able.

Teach me patience, Lord,

Show me how to wait on You and on others.

Help me to trust in You to work Your miracles:

     to fix those broken hearts that seem unfixable,

     to mend those broken relationships that seem unmendable,

     to replace anger and hatred with love and caring,

     to give purpose to life when there are so many doubts.

Help me to be quiet instead of speaking inappropriately.

Teach me discernment when interacting with others.

Give me wisdom to know when to speak and when to listen.

Give me the courage, Lord, to do the right thing,

     even if I must put aside personal pride ,

     even if I must risk suffering the pain of rejection.

Encourage me to go the extra mile for those in need.

Help me to be a better forgiver than I am.

Cleanse my mind and heart of those delicious, juicy grudges

     that I enjoy chewing and mulling over.

Demolish  those ugly, jealous thoughts and prideful boasts

     that dwell in the depths of my heart,

     the sinfulness that surfaces when I am not alert.

 How quickly I slide from the heights of joy

     to the depths of human sin and degradation!!

I do not seem to learn do I?

And still, in spite of all my short comings,

     all the ugliness I enjoy wallowing in,

     You still look for me, love me, and forgive me,

     when I cry to You and ask You to find me

     because I am lost and cannot find myself.

Give me the strength and the faith to trust that You

      will hold me up and stay with me

      when I try to follow You down unfamiliar roads,

      when I go out to meet You in the places to which You call me.

Guide me and show me where You want me to go,

      what You want me to do.

Use me to show Your wonderful love to others.

Let me share the joy of being Your beloved child with them.

Let me show them the peace obtained from knowing and abiding in You.