Almighty God, As I cross the threshold of this day I commit myself, soul, body, affairs, friends, to thy care; watch over, keep, guide, direct, sanctify, bless me.
Incline my heart to thy ways; mould me wholly into the image of Jesus, as a potter forms the clay; may my lips be a well-tuned harp to sound thy praise; let those around see me living by thy Spirit, trampling the world underfoot, unconformed to lying vanities, transformed by a renewed mind, clad in the entire armor of God, shining as a never-dimmed light, showing holiness in all my doings.
Do we commit ourselves to our heavenly Father each day; or do we commit ourselves to our agendas and plans?
How is my heart inclined today? How will it be inclined as the day progresses? Is the image of Jesus what I seek in the midst of the vicissitudes of life? Do I see myself as clay in the hands of the Potter; or do I see all around me as clay in my hands?
What shall we say concerning our lips? Are they well-turned harps sounding His praise? What are they when traffic is bad? When there are delays in our desires? When things do not go as we planned?
Am I aware of lying vanities; or am I a proponent of them? Do I acquiesce in the values and ways of the world? Is my mind transformed into the image of the world-system; or is it transformed into the image of Jesus? Will I trample the values of the world underfoot; or will the standards of the world grind me to dust?
Will I show holiness in an unholy world? Will I show purity in a world of filth? Will I not be ashamed to be innocent in the face of wicked wisdom and nuance?
Will holiness of peace attend my ways? Will holiness of thought and deed clothe my life? Will I live as if I reside in the Holy of Holies? That is, after all, where Christ has called us – to live there and to live out from there; to live in His Presence and to live out from His Presence.
Our world needs to see the innocence of holiness, the innocence of life on the Potter’s wheel; our world does not need us to be as it is, but to be other than it is – and at the same time sharing its sorrow and grief while ministering life and hope in Christ.
If Christ is incarnate in us; then we are to be Christ to those around us – individually and as His many-membered Body; will we commit ourselves to Him as we cross the threshold of each and every day?
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