A Prayer for Unity in My Family

Father, we sat at the same table tonight and barely spoke, each of us carrying old wounds like stones in our pockets. We share a name and a history, and somehow we have grown into strangers under one roof.

I confess my part in the distance. The grudges I have rehearsed, the apologies I have withheld, the way I would rather be right than be reconciled. Pride has built walls where there should be doors.

So I turn to You, who makes families out of strangers and binds the broken back together. You are the peace that no argument can give and no silence can steal.

Knit us back together. Soften the hardest heart, and let it be mine first. Give us the courage to say the words we have been swallowing, and the grace to hear them when they come.

You said how good and pleasant it is when family dwells together in unity. We are far from it tonight, but You specialize in the distance between people. Close ours.

I lay our tangled history at Your feet. I cannot force anyone to soften, but I can stop adding to the wall. Begin the mending with me, and make us a family that chooses each other again. Amen.