Lord, like Peter, I am sometimes so afraid,
yet You made him the rock of Your Church.
I long to be closer to You.
Help me to remember that nothing is important
in my life unless it glorifies You in some way.
It's so easy to get caught up in the day to day of my life and keep saying,
"Tomorrow, I will spend more time in prayer,"
but now my longing meets Your love and I want to do it now.
Help me to rely on You for help.
The prayer asks You that I reach perfection.
Please, Lord, remind me that "perfection"
isn't the crazy, "successful" way I try to live my life,
but a perfection of my most authentic, real self.
My "perfection" might be holding my many flaws
in my open hands, asking You to help me accept them.
Heal me, Lord, and help me to find You in the darkness of my life.
Let me reach out in this darkness and feel your hand
and love there to guide me.
May the Lord bless us, protect us from all evil and bring us
to everlasting life.
Amen.
The Columbans are a society of missionaries, including priests and lay people, who minister to people of various cultures as a way of witnessing to the universal love of God.