A Prayer for the New Year

Rabbi Deb Smith

I am good at making resolutions, G-d, but I am not very good at keeping them.
There are so many things I would like to achieve, so many changes I would like to make.
I pray to you G-d, for strength and for wisdom. I want to live a meaningful life, G-d. I want to discern my true promise.
I want to understand why You have put me here.
Grant me insight, G-d. Show me the person I have the potential to become. Let me find my passion, G-d.
Teach me to resist temptation, to conquer self-destructive habits, to overcome selfishness and pettiness.
Help me grow in compassion for others, for myself and to act with more mercy toward this aching fragile planet.
Give me the humility and the courage to repair relationships that pride has destroyed.
Show me how I can bring hope and healing into this world.
Let this be a good year, G-d: a year of health, a year of blessing, a year of love, a year of peace for all.

 

From Heart Whispers: Sharing Reflections with God, published in 2021