Morning Prayer - Your Word, A Light For My Eyes

Father,

I stand before You at the beginning of a new day, and my first request is simple, yet so difficult: give me Your eyes today.

Help me to see the world, other people, and myself through Your eyes—with a gaze that is pure, loving, and true.

I know how quickly my gaze becomes clouded, how easily it is drawn to things that lead me away from You. Your word for me this morning is direct and radical.

“And if your eye causes you to stumble, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell.” (Mark 9:47)

Lord, give me the courage for such radical devotion! Help me today to resolutely turn my gaze from everything that poisons my soul.

For I know that all that glitters and shines is not from You.

“For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world.” (1 John 2:16)

Lord, Heal My Eyes

I long for my whole body, my whole life, to be bathed in Your light.

“The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy, your whole body will be full of light.” (Matthew 6:22)

Please, heal my eyes. Cleanse them of all that makes them sick and dim. I cannot do this on my own, so I ask You with all my heart:

“Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law.” (Psalm 119:18)

May I not be blind to Your wonderful works today. May I see them in the sunrise, in a kind word, in the silence of prayer. May Your word be a guide for my gaze.

“Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.” (Psalm 119:105)

I Lift My Eyes to the Mountains

When the worries and temptations of this day try to pull me down, when my gaze becomes confused again, I want to remember where I must look: not down at the ground, but up to You.

I no longer want to merely observe You from a distance; I want to live in Your presence.

“I lift up my eyes to the mountains— where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth.” (Psalm 121:1-2)

You are my help. You are my strength. In Your presence, my heart is purified and my sight becomes clear. I believe in Your promise that You have chosen me, despite my unworthiness, and prepared a way for me to come to You.