Prayer of the Day

Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.

Wash what I cannot wash. Reach the corners I hide even from myself — the grudge I have made comfortable, the envy I dress up as ambition, the small deceits I no longer notice.

I do not want to be merely pardoned, Lord. I want to be different.

Make my heart a room You would be at home in.

In Jesus' name, Amen.

Father, here is my child, almost asleep. Of everything You've trusted me with, this is the one that makes me pray the hardest.

Watch over this child tonight. Keep their sleep sweet and their dreams kind. Let them wake up rested, ready to laugh.

Thank You for who You made them to be — for the questions they ask, the way they see things, the particular joy they carry into a room. I forget to be amazed. Tonight I remember.

Grow them up strong and gentle, Lord. Give them courage for a world I can't follow them into, and a faith that's truly their own, not borrowed from mine.

Forgive me for the ways I fell short as a parent today. Cover my gaps with Your grace — You have always been the better Father.

Hold them tonight, and hold them always, long after my arms can't reach.

In Jesus' name, Amen.