Lord, let me not be enamored with power, nor to judge based on the adherents I attract, nor the trajectory of my bank account. Forgive me for my addiction to success and for my flawed concepts of worth. Instead, open my eyes and help me see. Open my hands and help me share. Open my heart and help me love, just as you have loved us. And along with sight and service and love, give me courage to live into the “instead” I so desperately want. Amen.

Prayer by a member of the Dakotas Conference of the UMC

The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will fulfill the promise I made to the house of Israel and the house of Judah. In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch to spring up for David; and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. In those days Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will live in safety. And this is the name by which it will be called: “The Lord is our righteousness.”

Jeremiah 33:14-16