I asked my good friend Ron Dotson for a good prayer for the times. Although I’m not conventionally religious, I like to pray often; I hope someone listens. Ron, who is deeply religious, tolerates me with his prayer and support and prays regularly for my soul. Jesus is a God to Ron. He’s not God to me, but Christ has inspired me all my life.
We could use him and his compassion these days, as could the people claiming to be Christians. This may be why Ron, who lives in Ohio and is a decorated war veteran, tolerates me.
Thanks to him for sending me the Peace Prayer of Saint Francis; I wish everyone in the country could read it these days. It helps me in the morning. I’m not there yet, but the prayer tells me where I want to go, and I’m trying. My idea is: don’t be mad, be better. Thanks, Ron.
Peace Prayer of Saint Francis:
Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
Where there is injury, pardon;
Where there is doubt, faith:
Where there is despair, hope:
Where there is darkness, light:
Where there is sadness, joy:
O Divine Master, grant that I may not seek to be consoled as to console,
To be understood as to understand,
To be loved as to love;
For it is in giving that we receive;
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
It is in dying to self that we are born to eternal life.
Sunrise this morning at Bedlam Farm. The sky was amazing.
Ron Dotson, my good friend and guide.
There is a beautiful tune that goes with this peom, a calming & inspiring hymn that we sing in the Anglican church here in Canada( and no doubt in many other places).
I love that prayer! We learned it as a song in the 2nd grade at the Catholic school I went to. It was a requirement for making your first communion. It often just plays in my head when I’m feeling all topsy turvey about things and it still has a calming effect on my soul. Thank you for sharing🥰
I pray the prayer of St. Francis every morning and try to live up to the ideals it propounds.
I love the idea of this prayer. We were taught it in recovery land, as a way to get outside of ourselves. The point was to grow and evolve towards being the kind of person who is healed enough to be able to be of service to others. Let me say that this has been one of the hardest journeys of my life; my brain only ever wanted to consider me and how anything affected me, like a child. It has taken much counseling, healing and hard looks in the mirror, along with guidance and love from others for me to embody the ideals of this prayer. Thank you Jon and Ron, for the reminder of this prayer.