Instead of my usual thoughts on a joy passage in scripture, today I am sharing with all of you my prayer. Lately I’ve been using the Lord’s Prayer to structure my prayers, something I learned through my Huddle group as we have been reading the book Building a Discipling Culture by Mike Breen. I pray that my small petitions can be a blessing to you today.

Father, I am tired today. I am physically exhausted, and that brings me down mentally, emotionally. I find it difficult to focus on the things that ultimately draw me closer to you. I stare at the blank page of my prayer journal, but the structure I’ve been using lately for my prayers is useless. I am distracted by a thousand little things, not the least of which is the constant clutter and chaos of my desk. Help me, Lord.

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name… Oh, Lord, Your character is all I look to for reassurance. It is in You that I find my identity, my security, my meaning. Apart from You I am nothing.

Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven… Your kingdom stretches beyond all I can imagine. I am but a tiny speck in a universe so immense that no one can see the end of it, and yet all of it is Your creation. And Your kingdom stretches beyond creation and into the heavenly realms. My mind spins at the thought of it all, impossible to comprehend.

Give us this day our daily bread… I need Your provision, my God and my King. In You I lack nothing. Without You, I cannot survive. I am stunned in the knowledge that You take care of me every day, despite how very small I am.

And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us… I am a sinner. You know that I am incapable of living a sinless life, and desperately need Your forgiveness. And even in that grace, I sometimes refuse forgiveness to others. Forgive me for that, Lord, and help me to change.

Lead us not into temptation… I need Your guidance as I seek that change in my life. You alone can point me on the path that leads me into peace and joy. Give me the courage to follow You even when I cannot see where You lead.

But deliver us from evil… Even as I follow You, evil follows me. I am a sinner, and as such I cannot escape evil in this life. So please, I beg You God, protect me from the darts of Satan which seek to destroy my life. I already know that You do.