Dear Lord, one of my professors used to tell students, "Anticipate your regrets." He wasn't talking about a "YOLO" attitude but rather a mature and sensible way to have a life with service that we, in hindsight, can be proud of, that we can offer to you. You know that I have tried to live my life that way and have continually examined my priorities, goals, and family needs, ever since I was young. Help us all do do this kind of soul searching. Help us realize NOW what we'd be sorry we didn't do, especially in the ways we care for others. None of us can see every eventuality, and many of our regrets are the result of trying to do our best but not always succeeding. But please guide us in all our ways. Help us to put ourselves in the place of a person looking back on his or her life, so that we can clarify---and possibly change---the things in which we're engaged and the attitudes by which we feel and perceive. In the words of Psalm 36, create "wide places" in our lives. Help us remember the words of the philosopher Jose Ortega y Gasset: "Tell me what you pay attention to and I will tell you who you are." In Christ's name. Amen.
(The idea of "Hump Day Prayers" came from my college friend's blog "Le Padre Ver Livre," http://jimkane.wordpress.com.)
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