The Lord’s Prayer
by Dusty Johnson
(a personal and paraphrased version of the Lord’s Prayer
“Lord, here I am. Quiet and open.
Please meet with me in these vulnerable and anxious places in my heart and mind.
Come and bring the resources of your kingdom to my circumstances. May you break through to my earthly existence with fullness. I want to experience you today and engage others in a similar way.
Lord, please feed me and provide for me on every level. Bring nourishment to my weary soul. Help me trust The One who owns everything and shares generously with all.
Lead me and guide me in the most practical ways.
Lord, please forgive me, wash me, and repurpose my steps. Though waves of shame and the reality of my shortcomings are obvious and reoccurring, I look to you to interrupt these vicious cycles. I am tempted to hide my vulnerabilities with my own solutions. But I know better.
May your light come to my darkness. I rehearse your grace and receive your gentle corrections where I come up short. You are consistent and mature with me. Your tenderness imprints on my soul. I welcome the ways you dissolve my anxious energy and the disappointments that haunt me in the quiet.
Lord, I need your covering. Protect me and my loved ones from the dark forces layered into our human existence. You know this realm best and have conquered the Adversary. As you keep a watchful eye before me and behind me,
I trust your guiding presence and sturdy grip.
When fear begins to swirl and I am overwhelmed by noisy problems, I find refuge in you. As my weakness is exposed, may your strength join me
and expand your territory within my core.
Lord of heaven and earth, you have shown yourself faithful time and again.
I am warmed by your patient and consistent pursuit.
My soul is inspired by the witness of scripture, encouraged by the testimony of the devoted, and sturdied by your abiding presence.
I attest to He who Was, Is, and Is to come.
Why would I stop trusting you now?
I look upward for insight…
I worship you alone!
I look inward for understanding…
transform me deep within!
I look outward for application…
help me not overfunction as I simply sow your seeds and sing your songs!
I seek and trust you with my today.”
