All praise and honor be Yours, O Patient and Compassionate God. Many have been my offenses against You and many have been the times You’ve forgiven me for them. Because You know me so well … having seen the flaws in my character and the weakness of my flesh … You are willing to work with me to become a better person. Your love is a balm that covers my shame and an antidote to ward off temptation as I fight the good fight of faith. Through the gift of the Holy Spirit, I’ve been provided with a mentor, comforter and peacemaker. By his taking my hand to guide me, I am able to successfully walk the path to which You have called me. Because of Your compassion, I no longer have to struggle alone to overcome the forces of evil that continually strive to separate me from You. Because of Your patience, You give me the time I need to learn from my mistakes and mature into the person You want me to become. I am blessed by the fact that You let me start over again each time I fail.
How long must You stand by and watch as I sin against You and follow the ways of the world? I believe Your answer to my question is “however long it takes.” Like the children of Israel, who wandered in the wilderness for 40 years before they could enter their promised land, so will You wait for me to get my life straightened out before I can cross over into my promised land. I know my life will start turning around when … I stop living for myself and my wants … I accept Your Word as the road map for my life … and, I humble myself by submitting and committing to following in Your ways. Until I do, life will be filled with endless sadness, disappointments and emptiness. That is why I seek You to find the answers to a life filled with contentment, peace and joy. As I open my self to You, Your love rushes in and darkness is pushed out. No longer is my motto “my way or the highway”, instead it’s “Your way is my way.” And I will live like I mean it.
How long will it take me to muster the faith and courage that will enable me to walk as You did among men? Filled with love and a servant’s heart, You went about doing good … so why can’t I? I have gladly accepted Your gift of eternal life … why am I timid about telling others about it? Maybe it’s because when I make it known I am a Christian, I feel like I’m compelled to live like one. Or, maybe it’s because I am afraid to fail or appear foolish. Maybe it’s because I spend so much time looking after my things that I have little time to talk about Your Kingdom. I know that You see and understand my weaknesses. I also know that You will never give up on helping me transform my life and reforming my character. Your hope is that I will prioritize the things going on in my life in a way that they will produce a better person in me. You are an awesome God!! You never run out of patience or compassion toward me and that’s why I will persevere in following in Your footsteps. And it’s in Jesus’ name I pray. AMEN!!
Romans 2: 7 God will give to each according to what he has done.