A Prayer of St. Francis, for "National Day of Prayer"

This is one of my favorite historical prayers, because it calls for action.  In fact, I keep it on a card in my desk drawer at work.  Too often, I fear that we beg God's sympathy, when we should seek his will and beg for more of him in us.  For a Christian, I think that there can be no greater desire than to be filled with God and used by him.
A Prayer of St. Francis
Lord, make me an instrument of Your Peace
  Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
  Where there is injury, pardon;
  Where there is doubt, faith;
  Where there is depair, hope;
  Where there is darkness, light;
  Where there is sadness, joy.
 
O Divine Master, grant that I may seek not so much to be consoled, as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love; for it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned, and it is in dying that we are born to Eternal Life. Amen.
I would encourage you today especially, as you contemplate prayer, to consider incorporating the rich tradition of rote and historical prayers in your own life.