the soul of leadership

O God of such truth as sweeps away all lies,
    of such grace as shrivels all excuses,
come now to find us
    for we have lost our selves
        in a shuffle of disguises
            and the rattle of empty words.

Lord your Spirit move mercifully
    to recreate us from
        the chaos of our lives.

We have been careless
    of our days,
        our loves,
            our gifts,
                our chances. . . .

Our prayer is to change, O God,
    not out of despair of self
        but for love of you,
            and for the selves we long to become
                before we simply waste away.

Let your mercy move in and through us now. . . .

Amen.

- Ruth Haley Barton