Heavenly Father

A collection of prayer.

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How We Measure

For you will be judged by the same standard with which you judge others, and you will be measured by the same measure you use. Matthew 7:2

Making a judgement call seems to be human nature. We see, we assess, we decide in the blink of an eye. We do it all the time without even giving it a second thought, not only with our words, but also with our tone, and our demeanor. When we say that some one is “unbelievable” or “ridiculous” what we’re really doing is measuring their worth. The word ridiculous means that what we’re commenting on is worthy of ridicule, and we say it regularly, without thinking of what we’re really saying. When we say that someone is unbelievable, what we’re really saying is that we think their behavior is unacceptable to us, or that they are scarcely credible, they are too improbable for us to believe. And when we use these types of terms in these ways, we’re not complimenting someone, we’re belittling them.

It is so easy for us to belittle others when we think we are seeing rightly. We call them sick, brainwashed, crazy, idiots, disgusting, and worse. It’s not just how we measure that will be handed back to us, but also what we measure. If we measure hate, distrust, self-righteousness, disgust, discord, or whatever we fill that cup up with, that’s what we’ll get right back in our laps. “A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over” (Luke 6:38). Usually, when we reap the seeds we’ve sown, enough time has passed that we have completely forgotten that we are responsible for what we face. We judge, we blame, and we blindly measure out a little more, resulting in a downward spiral that’s difficult to break. It becomes us (the righteous) or them (the whichever derogatory name we choose).

I think this is why Christ advised us not to point out the splinter in someone’s eye, while we have a board in our own. It’s not a very good idea, because we tend to look at life through the narrow prism of our own desires and preconceived ideas, and no matter how smart we think we are, we have a limited view of truth. We are constantly barraged with opinions about reality, and we’ve become reliant upon those opinions. Frankly, one of our downfalls, since the fall, is that we’re quite lazy creatures. We gravitate toward what appears to be accurate, or worse yet, what we want that accuracy to look like, and not what our spidey-sense tells us is really true. It’s easier to reiterate what someone else tells us is right, than to use discernment. Discernment requires effort. It entails using our ears more than our lips, and making the effort to see the whole picture, not just the part that pleases us. Many times it’s those desires and ideas that become the “board” that blocks our vision.

Lately, I’ve seen so many people willing to throw away life-long friendships, or decide they will no longer speak to a relative, because they have convinced themselves of their own righteousness, their infallible perception of truth. I find it very sad. It brings to mind Matthew, the publican and disciple, with whom the Pharisees condemned Jesus for associating. The man who ended up recording the life of the One, Christ Jesus, who called him to a higher purpose and altered his life irrevocably. Or the Apostle Paul, who was hell-bent against Christ and his disciples, had an awakening, and found himself 180° from where he began. What did Paul see and what did he come to understand? Whatever the Lord had shown him, we know through Acts 9 that “the scales were removed from his eyes,” and unless the scales are removed from our eyes, too, we cannot perceive the truth at all. Without having eyes to see, we are bound to continue our default pattern of inappropriately consigning others to damnation by accusing them of all the butt-headed things of which we ourselves are guilty of as well. Whenever we “point the finger” at someone else, there are three that point back to us, that accuse us of what we find so offensive, so condemning.

A Prayer:

Heavenly Father,

Forgive us for clinging to our short-sightedness, to our preconceived notions. Open our eyes, let the scales fall away so that we may see as you see, so that we can love like you love. Help us to be aware of how we measure, to remember that all fall short in Your sight. Give us eyes to see that we may look at others with compassion in our hearts, forgiving their faults as you have so graciously forgiven ours.

Amen

~SLM

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Lenice’s Prayer

Thank you, Lord, for these dirty dishes.

I love this prayer for its simple, direct sentiment that’s filled with so many implied blessings; the food which caused the dishes to be soiled, the ability to prepare the food, the place in which to prepare it, and the family who shares its delicious goodness. My friend Lenice keeps it next to the kitchen sink as a reminder that God’s blessings can be found even in this most mundane of daily chores.

~SLM

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A Grateful Heart: My Prayer

Gratitude is on my mind today. I’ve been wondering why we find it so hard to just be thankful. When did gratitude go out of style, become so uncool? Every day we are so “ate up” with what we think is wrong in our lives, with what we think is insulting or offensive, that we can’t see past the negatives to the abundance of positives.

We obscure our lives with so much wanting, confusing desire with need, that sometimes, it seems, we forget this uncomplicated truth: “For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.” We live in a time that is unprecedented in all of recorded history. We literally have almost anything we desire at our fingertips, at any given moment, and while there seems to be great disparity between those who “have” and those who “have not,” even the poorest among us still enjoy a standard of living greater than all but a handful of other countries.

We are blessed, more than any other people at any other time, and the simple act of counting your blessings makes all the difference in the world to your attitude about life, turning your attention away from the “don’t” haves and toward the “do” haves. Even on our worst days, when we we’ve gotten a rotten diagnosis, or we don’t know how we’re ever going make it another day, we still have more than we came with. We can still “count it all joy, when we meet trials of various kinds, for we know that the testing of our faith produces steadfastness,  letting steadfastness have its full effect, that we may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”  And, we can still “give thanks in everything: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning us.”

So, here’s a prayer for a grateful heart:

Instill in me a grateful heart that I may know Your ways and live by them. That I may be thankful for all Your gifts, even when those gifts appear to me as trials, for it is through adversity that You draw me nearest to You, that You teach me of Your faithfulness and love, that You show me the meaning of perseverance, of trust, of faith.

Instill in me a grateful heart that I may see humanity through Your eyes. That I may be thankful for Your love, Your compassion, even when that love feels miles away and I cannot see it, knowing that each person I see faces the same fears, insecurities, and battles as I, for it is Your love which connects us all, which teaches us of hope, of tolerance, of compassion.

Instill in me and grateful heart that I may walk with you in love and joy. That I may be thankful for the tranquility of Your presence, even when I’m surrounded by chaos, and strife is the theme of the day, trusting that Your yoke is easy, that Your guidance will see me through, that I may find solace with a prayer on my lips and peace in my heart.

Amen

~ SLM

1 Timothy 6:7, James 1:2-4, 1 Thessalonians 5:18

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December Prayer 2014

Heavenly Father,

Thank you for the beauty of the Holiday Season, for the love and support of family, for the opportunity to reach out to the “least of these,” to live as you would have us, loving our neighbor as you have loved us, understanding that all we have we owe to You, for we come into this world with nothing, and that is also how we will all surely leave.

Keep us safe from the snares and pitfalls of our own inflated egos, which trap us in endless cycles of false hope and self-importance, filling us with grandiose thoughts of our own greatness, or desperate feelings of worthlessness and despair. Fill us, instead, with Your mighty Light, the Light of the World, whom You lovingly gave to us that we might live in Your presence, might recognize Your awesome grace, might know Your love, Your joy, Your peace.  Amen

~SLM

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A Prayer for All Saints Day

Heavenly Father,
How desperately we need your guidance in our lives, a rebirth in our thinking, a renewal of our minds. In our way of thinking, overcoming a life a threatening situation means staying alive, but in Your way of thinking, it sometimes means surrendering this life to the next. Your will be done, dear Lord, not ours! Give us the strength and dignity to endure, filling us with peace and serenity so we may bring glory and honor to Your holy name. Amen
~SLM

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A Prayer for Renewal

Heavenly Father, my refuge and my rock, fill my soul with your divine grace; let me know how much I am loved and cherished. Show me Your will; let me remember who I am, and what I am sent here to undertake. Help me to find what was stolen from me, and restore it to my sight. Fill my heart with Your love and Your peace; let me see the potential of my life. Give me a single-minded resolve to walk joyfully into my purpose, and the courage to walk away from those who would not see life’s wonders.   Amen

~SLM

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A Prayer for the New Year 2014

Finally, after all the “busy-work” of the Holiday Season, a moment of peace and contemplation – ahh! I have missed my quiet time of reflection and have resolved to be more disciplined about it. This is the first fruit, the rebirth of sanity for the new year, expressed in a simple prayer.

Heavenly Father,

All praise and honor belong to you for there is no other like you, none who compare to you. You know my heart, dear Lord, my sorrows and joys, my triumphs and troubles; all that I am is laid bare unto you. Send me your Word, your Wisdom, a guiding light in the darkness, for you are the rock upon which I have built my life.  Give me toleration for the weaknesses of my brothers and sisters, and remind me that I, too, am far less than perfect. Keep my eyes fixed upon your example, your consequence,  steering my every step to Your greater purpose, filling my heart with the tranquility of your presence, the comfort of your love that I may show others peace and encouragement in your name.

Amen.

SLM

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A Prayer for Communication

Heavenly Father, inventor and keeper of the word, fill me with Your love and compassion whenever I speak. Let me not sully my discourse with bitterness and hatred, but create in me Your spirit of benevolence guiding my words with prudence and dignity, so they may be a source of enthusiasm and inspiration, of calm comfort to others. Amen.

 

 

~SLM

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A Prayer for Love

As if my year-long (and I suspect much longer) commitment to Proverbs wasn’t enough, I’ve recently begun an additional study of Deuteronomy, and this prayer was on my heart this morning…

Heavenly Father, majestic in holiness, awesome in praises, fill my heart Your loving presence. Give me ears to hear and eyes to see that I may live in Your commandment, loving you with all my heart, all my soul and all my might. Bind Your love upon my heart so that I may conscientiously talk of it when I sit in my house, when I walk by the way, when I lie down and when I rise up, diligently showing Your love to those I meet through word and deed.  Amen.

~SLM