Our
gracious God,
we
thank you today for the land in which we live.
We
thank you for the freedoms which are ours,
for
the multitude of opportunities presented to each of us,
for
a land of abundance.
Forgive
us for our lack of creativity
in
sharing the nation’s bounties inequitably,
for
tarnishing our political process with greed,
for
failing the needy.
Save
us from that litany of destructive behaviours
which
St. Paul outlined:
enmities, strife, jealousy, anger,
quarrels, dissension, factions, envy,
and all that would undo us.
Lead
us instead to strive for the fruits of the spirit.
Help us to develop loving behaviours
which demonstrate care and compassion for
others.
Help us in an over-serious and gloomy world
to know real joy
because you help us overcome the world.
Help us to work for peace in a world which
seems to prefer violence.
Help us, in our hurry up world, to develop
patience
and to learn that all does not have to be
completed in our hurry up time.
Help us to demonstrate kindness to all
and especially to those with whom we find
it especially difficult to be kind.
Help us to learn generosity with our
resources
but help us especially to learn how to be
generous
in our attitudes and behaviours toward
people.
And help us to be faithful, gentle, and self-controlled.
O
God, raise our national vision.
Give
us tolerance and understanding for all peoples.
May
we hold dear for all people the freedoms we cherish. Amen.
~
written by Richard Einerson, and posted on Richard
Einerson: Prayers of the People. http://www.richardeinerson.com/einerson_007.htm
