Eleanor Roosevelt prayed this prayer nightly. I love it.
I am going to steal it for the next ten days and I'm inviting you to join me.
“Our Father, who has set a restlessness in our hearts and made us all seekers after that which we can never fully find, forbid us to be satisfied with what we make of life. Draw us from base content and set our eyes on far-off goals. Keep us at tasks too hard for us that we may be driven to Thee for strength. Deliver us from fretfulness and self-pitying; make us sure of the good we cannot see and of the hidden good in the world. Open our eyes to simple beauty all around us and our hearts to the loveliness men hide from us because we do not try to understand them. Save us from ourselves and show us a vision of a world made new.” I don't want to be satisfied with life as I know it. I feel that restlessness for God in my heart. Even though I realize that it means I will need things that are too hard for me, I'm glad God loves me enough to give them.
I love the closing line. "Save us from ourselves...", If I am at all honest, most of my struggles are rooted in my selfishness. I think about myself all the time. While that is natural, it isn't holy. I want to be a part of God's vision for a world made new. Prayer helps me focus outside myself. I will be praying this prayer every day. The repetition will help me meditate on the words not just in the morning, but through the day. I know God is going to answer it, and I plan on keeping my eyes open for the ways he teaches me through awareness. Be brave enough to pray it with me. I love company, so let me know if you plan on praying this too.