A Prayer For Those In Ministry

One of my favorite prayers is by Archbishop Oscar Romero.

It helps, now and then, to step back,

and take the long view.

The Kingdom of Heaven is not only beyond our efforts,

it is even beyond our vision. 

We accomplish in our lifetime only a tiny fraction

of the magnificent enterprise that is God’s work.

Nothing we do is complete,

which is another way of saying

That the Kingdom always lies beyond us.

No statement says all that could be said.

No prayer fully expresses our faith.

No confession brings perfection.

No pastoral visit brings wholeness.

No program accomplishes the Church’s mission.

No set of goals and objectives includes everything.

This is what we are about.

We will plant the seeds that one day will grow,

We water seeds already planted.

knowing that they hold future promise.

We lay foundations

that will need further development.

We provide yeast that produces effects

far beyond our capabilities.

We cannot do everything,

and there is a sense of liberation in realizing that.

This enables us to do something,

and to do it very well.

It may be incomplete,

but everything is a beginning,

a step along the way,

an opportunity for the Lord’s grace

to enter and do the rest.

We may never see the end results,

But that is the difference between the master builder

and the worker.

We are the workers, not master builders,

ministers, not messiahs.

We are prophets of a future of our own.

May that future be filled with

grace, peace, and hope.

Amen.