Prayer of the Day

Lord, thank You for waking me to a new day. I did nothing to earn these hours. They are a gift, and I want to open them like one.

Thank You for rest, even if the night was short. Thank You for the light coming through the window, for the first sounds of the morning, for a body that carries me and a mind that meets You here.

Yesterday is behind me — its work done, its mistakes covered by Your mercy. You tell me Your compassions are new every morning, so let me begin again without dragging the old weight along.

Give me eyes today to see what is good: the small kindnesses, the ordinary beauty, the people I might otherwise walk past. Let the first words of my heart be thank You, and let that thanks set the tone for everything after.

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.