Lord Jesus,
In the silence of this new morning, my heart and my thoughts turn to you. Before the day truly begins, I wish to surrender my heart to you, especially those parts prone to pride, contentiousness, and division. I ask that you fill me with your spirit of peace and unity.
I recall your fervent prayer, offered on the final evening before your passion, for all who would come to believe in you. Your greatest desire was not for our safety or comfort, but for our perfect unity with you and with one another.
“I in them and you in me, that they may be perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.” (John 17:23)
Lord, what depth of love is hidden in these words. You desire that our connection with one another be so strong and so evident that it would become a sign to the world. A sign that you are real, and that your love is real.
Yet I confess that I so often live in opposition to this desire of yours. It is so easy to focus on differences, on the faults of others, on what divides us. Too quickly I build walls where you wish to build bridges. Therefore, remind me today of the call of the Apostle Paul.
“I implore you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ: that you all speak the same thing and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly united in the same mind and in the same conviction.” (1 Cor 1:10)
Help me, Jesus, to renounce the spirit of criticism and dissension. Remove from me the need to always be right. I desire to complement my brothers and sisters, not to compete with them or to condemn them.
Show me the root of my divisions, which lies hidden in my heart. Show me my selfishness and my desire for my own glory, which blind me to the needs and the worth of others.
“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.” (Phil 2:3)
Lord, this is so difficult. My nature rebels against it. Therefore, I ask you, transform my heart. Take my contentiousness and give me your humility. Help me today, in every person I meet, to truly see someone whom I can value and respect.
I desire to live from the truth that your word proclaims about us. Regardless of our differences, something deeper and stronger binds us together in you.
“One body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling.” (Eph 4:4)
Thank you for this truth. Because we are one body, the pain of another affects me. Because we have one Spirit, the joy of another brings me happiness. May this realization guide me today in my decisions and conversations.
May my guide for today be simple and clear, focused on what is truly important in your kingdom.
“Let us therefore strive for that which leads to peace and to mutual upbuilding.” (Rom 14:19)
Yes, Lord. Today I desire to strive for peace. I wish to be a person who brings reconciliation, not unrest. I want to be someone who helps others grow in faith and love.
And I know that this path begins within me, in the transformation of my character into your likeness. Therefore, I ask for the grace that the qualities which build up community may grow in me.
“Finally, all of you, be of one mind, sympathetic, loving as brothers, compassionate, and humble.” (1 Pet 3:8)
Lord Jesus, make me so. May I be an instrument today of your harmony, compassion, brotherly love, mercy, and humility. Where there is division, let me bring unity. Where there is hardness of heart, let me bring compassion.
Guide me through this day, that with my words and my deeds, I may build your kingdom of peace.
Amen.
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