Let it begin with me

 

Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace;
Our country is so fractured and fearful. I can be kind. I can be patient. I can be slow to judge.

Where there is hatred, let me sow love; 
It costs nothing to share a smile. Today, remind me to smile at someone who does not look like me. May that smile ripple like water, inviting others to follow.

Where there is injury, pardon; 
Make me humble enough to say "I'm sorry" and humble enough to hold my tongue so I will have nothing to apologize for.

Where there is doubt, faith; 
Remind me I don't need to have the answers, that I only need to trust in you.

Where there is despair, hope; 
Let my kindness and patience sow seeds of hope that we are still a good people.

Where there is darkness, light; 
Help me to see my light, to share my light, and to seek and nurture the light in others.

And where there is sadness, joy. 
I find joy in the colors of fall, in the touch of a friend, in a moment of quiet. Remind me to share that joy and to help others find theirs.

O Divine Master,
Grant that I may not so much seek
To be consoled as to console;
To be understood, as to understand;
To be loved, as to love; 
Call me to step outside of myself, to go where you would have me go, to be Your instrument, to be calm water that gently ripple invitations of love.

For it is in giving that we receive,
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
And it is in dying that we are born to Eternal Life. 

Amen.

(Thanks to St. Francis for the inspiration.)