Prayer at the Kotel

PRAYER AT THE KOTEL

Hi God, it’s me. I stand here in awe before the remnant of Your house, at this place where heaven and earth meet, where the portal to the heavens is found. In this moment, I ask You to hear the unformed words of my heart and the yearnings of my soul. May my prayers align with Your will for me. May I have the strength to stand vulnerable before You and ask for Your blessings and Your mercy. May I live my life to my fullest potential, knowing that my greatness is found not in what happens to me, but in who I am and how I behave in the face of what happens to me. May I have an open and loving heart. May I give love and receive it. May my strength be as enduring as these ancient stones, and may my actions reflect my values and aspirations. May all those I love and care for be sheltered in Your loving embrace. May I find peace and may I create peace. God, You made me purposefully with love and with wisdom of what my soul needs to perfect itself in this lifetime. While I may not always understand Your ways, may I have a heart of faithfulness and a mind to believe that “this too is for the good.”

Grant me the serenity to face my trials with poise and grace. May I never turn my heart away from the trials of my fellow man. May I love my fellow as myself and pray for their health and joy as I do for my own. May You heal this fractured world and grant freedom and peace to all who are oppressed. Help me to remember that my faithfulness is a muscle that requires constant strengthening and conditioning. If tears are the sweat of the soul, may my tears serve to strengthen me. May those who have caused me pain have clarity and offer reconciliation and restitution. May those I have hurt give me the opportunity to make amends so that they might forgive me. As a parent, may I always remember my “Parent in heaven,” and just as I yearn for closeness with my children, so might I yearn for closeness to You.

— Adrienne Gold Davis, Toronto, Canada