Prayers you won’t hear on the lips of people following Jesus

(If you do hear any of them, I guess you know what that means)

Lord, shield me from the needs of people I meet today so that I don’t feel responsible to do anything to meet their needs;

Lord, defeat the (insert other political party name here), so that your kingdom will come on earth as it is in heaven;

Lord, help me to keep the ordinary activities and choices of this day separate from the private spiritual journey I’m on;

Lord, help me to look beyond the pained expressions on the faces of bullied teenagers, stressed-out parents, and neglected elders, to see your glory;

Lord, keep others from interrupting my day with their personal worries or fears that have nothing to do with the good I hope to accomplish today;

Lord, prevent others from asking me about my faith in you (let my actions speak for themselves);

Lord, remove my guilt when I have more pressing things to do than stop and help a neighbor;

Lord, give me a pure heart, unstained by the sins of this world (by keeping me at a safe distance from those whose morality doesn’t look like mine);

Lord, help me to appreciate the exclusive claims of Christianity and its superiority over other religious traditions;

Lord, make me great in your coming kingdom;

Lord, I believe, and there is no unbelief in me;

Lord, I thank you that I am not full of myself like other people!

Words (c) Mark Lloyd Richardson