The Merton Prayer

Thomas Merton is yet another one my favorite contemplative writers. Here is one of his best-known prayers:

“MY LORD GOD, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road, though I may know nothing about it. Therefore I will trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.” (byThomas Merton, Thoughts in Solitude)

I don’t like surprises. I like to have all the details worked out before every situation, including contingency plans. A few months ago, my husband and I went on a weekend getaway. He planned everything, and I decided to not ask too many questions. This took a great deal of trust on my part. Although there were a few minor issues, overall the weekend went well. I tried to keep reminding myself of my husband’s intentions rather than focusing on the outcome of his decisions.

Merton’s prayer reminds us that God looks at our intentions to please Him, rather than at the outcome of those intentions. I’ve started a project with good intentions, only to end up making a royal mess out of things. Somehow, God redeems these messes and reveals a lesson in truth through my mistakes. I don’t always recognize these lessons. Mostly I just mope about how I manage to screw things up despite my best intentions and make resolutions about not trying that again! Merton’s prayer urges us to trust God even after we make mistakes, to not be afraid of negative outcomes, because God is with us…even in the perils, even when we are lost, even in the darkest dark.