Make me strong in spirit, able to weather the challenges of life without breaking in the storm. Make me able to bend with the winds and the rain, while knowing that I will once more stand straight when the storm passes.
Being strong in spirit does not only mean weathering storms, though. Sometimes it means knowing when to ask for help, it means knowing when I can bend no further without someone to lean on. Anyone who knows me may know how hard I find it to ask for help, unless I trust you very well. Asking for help is not my strong suit. So in asking to make me strong in spirit, I also ask for help in knowing when I need to ask for help.
Being strong in spirit means being strong enough to know when I can and should offer my help to my loved ones, to my friends. I feel a fierce urge to protect those I care most about, but I must recognize that they too have their own storms to weather and I must wait for them to ask for help. I have a hard time with this, since I know how long I will wait , how far I will let myself bend towards breaking, before I will grudgingly reach out for help.
Make me strong in spirit that I might weather the storms of life with grace;
Make me strong in spirit that I might reach out to others with dignity and gratefulness;
Make me strong in spirit that I might help others with respect and awareness of their needs;
Make me strong in spirit that I might live life with joy.
