Reading the Newspaper

God our Governor, our Judge, our Peace:

the pains of the world snag my heart,
and its turmoils trouble my mind.

There is much I wish to help

but cannot change.

There is much I grieve in the actions of others

but cannot control.

I rest this globe in your hands.
I trust it to your will, your justice, and your love.
I cry to you for its people in their distress.
I pledge to do my part, in my time and place,

to bring your reign near.

I release all I cannot help into your mercy
and into the hands of sisters and brothers
I do not know.

Give me a quiet mind, a spirit of hope,
and an energy of love
for the work and the rest to which you call me.

Give me the humility to live
gracefully with my limitations,

but without despair.

— Jennifer M. Phillips, Simple Prayers for Complicated Lives