First Steps – October 11, 2021

While A friend of mine shared with me this prayer. He didn’t know the origin or author, but I’m glad he shared it with me. I have called it “A Prayer for a Quiet Heart in a World of Chaos.” Over the last few mornings, this has been my centering prayer for the day.

A Prayer for a Quiet Heart in a World of Chaos
by Author Unknown

Slow me down Lord
Ease the pounding of my heart
By the quieting of my mind
With a vision of the eternal reach of time.

Give me amidst the confusion of my day
The calmness of the everlasting hills
Break the tensions of my nerves and muscles
With the soothing music of the singing streams
That live in my memory.

Help me to know 
The magical restoring power of sleep
Teach me the art
Of taking minute vacations
Of slowing down to look at a flower
To chat with a friend
To pat a dog
To read a few lines from a good book.

Remind me each day of the fable
Of the hare and the tortoise
That I may know that the race
Is not always to be swift
That there is more to life 
Than measuring speed.

Let me look upward
Into the branches of the towering oak
And know that it grew great and strong
Because it grew slowly and well.

Slow me down Lord
And inspire me to send my roots
Deep into the soil
Of life’s enduring values
That I may grow towards the starts
Of my enduring destiny. 

 
Blessings,
 

 


This Week’s Readings:
  • Monday – Galatians 5 | Galatians 6
  • Tuesday – 1 Corinthians 1 | 1 Corinthians 2 | 1 Corinthians 3
  • Wednesday- 1 Corinthians 4 | 1 Corinthians 5 | 1 Corinthians 6
  • Thursday – 1 Corinthians 7 | 1 Corinthians 8
  • Friday- 1 Corinthians 9 | 1 Corinthians 10 | 1 Corinthians 11
 
Please Pray for:
  • An end to the Covid Crisis.
  • Our children as they cope with world issues.
  • All upcoming ministry events inside and outside the walls of St. Paul.
  • Families in crisis.
  • Loved ones battling illness.
  • Those seeking to find their way.
  • The St. Paul Church family. 
  • The United Methodist Church family.
  • Our leaders, our country, and our world. 

“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need and thank him for all he has done.” – Philippians 4:6