Let your Gentleness be known

Pastor Carol Grace ♦ June 24, 2025 ♦ Leave a comment

(NRSV) 4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice.

5 Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. 6 Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Personalized scripture card:

“The Lord is near, Carol. Do not be anxious, but in everything through prayer and supplication and thanksgiving, let your request be made known to God, and His peace which passes all understanding shall guard your heart and mind in Christ Jesus.* Philippians 45-7

 

Years ago I began following a model of prayer by using the acronym “P.R.A.Y.” As a young Christian, I had little confidence in my prayers. By using this model to pray I began to gain the awareness of Who God was and who I was in Him. After all of these years I barely notice the order in which I pray because it has become so much a part of me.

I have been in a personal struggle over the past few months, making choices that hurt other people so that I could have peace. Then, in reversing those choices I hurt still more people. So today I share a prayer for restoration of peace, asking for mercy from God and forgiveness from those I hurt.

 

Father God, I come to You today with praise in my heart for Who you are. You are the One, True and Living God and my desire is with my dying breath that your praise will be on my lips. I have learned from reading your Word that you desire the praises of Your people, and you deserve all honor and glory because You are holy, holy, holy.

I repent of my sins, knowing that sin builds a wall between You and Your children, but the sacrifice that Jesus made tears down any walls, restoring us to a right relationship with You. And so I pray you would search my heart today, and if there be any wickedness in me forgive me. If I have been prideful or failed to show kindness, I repent before You. If I have acted hastily, failing to search out the answers in Your Word before making life-altering decisions , I pray not only for your mercy, but I pray you will soften the hearts of those I hurt. 

 

I come to You on behalf of people I have hurt, not through malice or intent, but because their idea of how I should live out the rest of my life clashes with what I believe You want. I chose to return to a life that has yielded so much pain, believing the Holy Spirit has intervened and will continue to work miracles of faith. I pray with everything within me that my family whom I love and would never intentionally hurt will be surrounded by the peace that only you can give and that they will, through Your love and mercy, forgive me for what they consider a betrayal and that our relationship will be restored.

And finally, I ask for the strength to really mean it when I pray thy kingdom come, thy will be done. May I understand that praying in Jesus’ name is not just the way we were taught to end our prayers, but it is the admission that we are asking only for things that would honor our Savior and our Lord.

May we each spend time in prayer rejoicing, repenting and being restored in our relationship to God and to our fellow man.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.