It's the time every year when it's ok to get nostalgic.  I was reviewing my blog posts for the past year and realized we are making a bigger difference in this community than I thought.  When you do we do, it's hard to measure movement.  We haven't totally rebuilt the whole community but we got a good start.  We are excited for 2012!

Happy New Year!

We had a blast at Crown Center with some of the families and youth.  Many of them had never been ice skating before.

Video of Ice Skating with Grandview Park Church

This song has been bouncing around in my brain for a week.  This video is a cover of a Randy Stonehill song called "Christmas at Denny's".  Maybe a little sad and somber, but a great message and challenge to all of us not to be so selfish this year.  

The message of Christmas is a message of hope!

Our December Newsletter.

Here is our December Newsletter!

We love you all!

December Newsletter

Contrast

"I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, " 
  - Ephesians 1:18

I couldn't help but reflect on the contrast of two things this week.  One being the start of the advent season.  The second being the end of the year blues.

Advents starts with the amazing topic of "Hope." Christmas brings hope.  Jesus brings hope. Our ministries should provide hope.  Our everyday lives should show hope to others.

That's just it.  The contrast arises in my questioning my very purpose.  Am I really making a difference?  Have I successfully engaged others to show them this hope and subsequently pointed them to the gospel?  Do I really hope myself; I mean really?  Is my life producing any real results?  I suppose it's not so bad, but I can see why the holiday season heightens so many people's despair and depression.  What a contrast.

  Lighting a candle representing "hope" will not suffice.  Being positive and optimistic falls short.  Being reminded of hope should point us to a deeper hope; a hope that defines our innermost desire to believe and follow Jesus and overflow this hope into others lives.  We need to do more than tie a knot at the end of our hope-rope.

This advent, let us not just light a hope candle, but dig into our hope and allow God to develop and grow our hope so that it overflows from our lives.  The rest of world could use a little more real hope.

Thanksgiving should be reciprocal.

Reciprocal action is an action done in return. Every November we get in our "thankful" mode.  We fill facebook with lists of things we are thankful for.  We may even sit back, smile, and reflect on on the things we are thankful for.

As I sit here contemplating Thanksgiving, I wonder if to often our thankfulness is a little selfish.  Sometimes I get into the trap of this and it comes out like, "Thank you God for all of the things you have given me."  I know that is not the intent of my thanksgiving, but I can't help but think there is more. Obviously, we should be extremely thankful for our lives.  It is good to come to God with thanksgiving.  It is a form of worship.  

2 Corinthians 9:11 states;
"You will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God."

Here our blessings are to result in others thanksgiving to God, not ours.  We are blessed to be a blessing.  God gives to us so that we can be generous.  God wants to use our generosity to bless others. Our generosity becomes a tool to bring others to thank God.

This Thanksgiving, let's be thankful, but let us reciprocate our thanksgings and blessings to show others how much God loves them.  As we open up your home to or visit family, friends, and neighbors to celebrate Thanksgiving, may we be generous so others may see God and be thankful.

Here is our November Newsletter:

Trotters November Newsletter

Working on it...

One of the many ministries I am working on is bringing groups from area churches to our neighborhood to join us in serving others.  I am still working on all of the details of the program.  I want to kick it off in the spring.  I had a group from Northern Hills Baptist Church down loving a family by helping to get their  new house painted.  We still have more to paint before the winter weather hits.


Here are some more pictures of our day together with this family -> House Painting

Missing CCDA...

There are two events that we have come enjoy every year:  the Cornerstone Music Festival and the CCDA convention.  These seem to meet our needs and encourage us more than anything else that we have tried.  Some of the other conventions are just too "hyped" for my taste.

With all of the challenges we have had the past month, we decided to cancel our trip to the CCDA (Christian Community Development Association) convention.  We thought with us just rebuilding our support, it would be best not to invest so much into this.  It is ironic that after I cancelled my reservations, we receive some funds that would have worked.

CCDA, you were missed in our lives this year.  What we do is kind of a lonely occupation and very few really understand our mission and passion. So, we will miss some of that fellowship with other crazies this year.

We will definitely be at next years convention.  I know I will need it by then.

One Step Forward, Two Steps Back.

We've all said it.  We've at least thought it.  Maybe we have heard it sung in a blues song.  "One step forward, two steps back." We are all too familiar with this idiom.  I've had a run of these episodes that seem to fit.  I got the entry floor doneand thought I could take a day off,  then the refrigerator died.  Got all of the cars running, now Kaiti's car needs work and the engine in my truck is blown.  When we were towing it home, Dana put a huge dent in the side of her car.  Seems like as soon as it looks like I will have time to really do what I am here to do, I have to spend my time fixing stuff.  I've often wondered why God called me into ministry and then allows all this to happen.  Sometimes I feel that there is no time to actually advance my ministry because I'm so busy fixing the stuff that breaks.  One step forward and two steps back.

I don't suppose there is any real comfort knowing that this happens to us all.  It's not a real joy of mine to hear of other's problems. While towing the truck home, we saw three other cars on the side of the road.  I know there are even many who don't have a vehicle to tow. I know there are people who had even worse days.  Still, the fact remains that it seems we never get ahead.  I can't tell you all the times we have used our vacation money to pay repair or medical bills.  I could tell you....

What if the goal of life is not to get ahead?  Then we we take one step forward and two steps back, we are really taking a total of three steps.  Maybe ending up where we started is ok.  When I look at all of the times I have had to struggle (which seems to be most of the time), I realize that I have to rely on God more.  During those times, I have developed better relationships with others.  When I share my struggles, I get closer to people, closer to God, and can better help others.

If we go one step forward, God is there.  When we take two step back, God is there also.

 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials.  These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.
                                                                                                          -1Peter 1:3-7

Immigration

Last night, I was at Youth Group at Grandview Park Church.  We were having a discussion on 1 Corinthians 12.  One teen had a little girl with her who was maybe 2 years old.  She said her name was Mi Hija, which is what her Daddy calls her (It means "My Daughter".)  When we were closing in prayer, the request came up to pray for this child, because her daddy was recently deported and she might not get to ever see him again.  Then 2 of the youth were talking about how they wish that they could go on their French Class trip to France this summer.  Being undocumented makes opportunities like this impossible.  One of these teens is also concerned because she turns 17 this year and can't get her residency status.

These are heart breaking examples of how our immigration policies hurt innocent youth and children that are caught up in this mess.

Pray for them.

911

A lot of people have posted their thoughts on 9/11.  Weird that that was only 10 years ago.  I have had a lot of thoughts today ranging from "What a messed up world." to "War is not the answer." to "What now?"

I think this best sums up how I choice to react:

Prayer of St. Francis

September Newsletter

Here is a link to our latest newsletter.

Trotter's September Newsletter

Finishing up

After taking a break for the summer ministries, I am trying to get my house done so we can be done with it and get my building permit closed.  My last big project is to redo the flooring in the entry, hall, and bathroom.  The hardwood floor has had so much damage that I am having to pull it all up and install new sub-flooring and then we will tile these areas.  Hoping to get the majority done this week.

At 2:00, I'm meeting with some youth to finish painting a room in the church we are using for an after school tutoring and internet cafe.

Thanks for your prayers.

Kanrockas

Dana and I spent all day Friday and Saturday at the Kanrocksas festival selling t-shirts.  We were manning the merch trailer to raise money for Grandview Park Church.  The festival would give the church $1000 for all of our help.

This morning, we are still quite worn out from the weekend.  It was a lot of fun working with the adults and youth from Grandview Park and it was a lot of fun talking to the myriad of people who visited our trailer to buy their festival or favorite band t-shirt.  We also enjoyed a variety of artists performing throughout the day.

I couldn't help but think about all of the crowd that we saw, ranging from teenagers to old school hippy rockers.  Were they there for a good time, some comfort or hope, an experience to enrich their lives and souls?  Perhaps they are just going through the motions, attending the latest concert which as guitarist Craig Chaquico said have become the churches of today.

How do we capture this generation with a real hope? How do we present the Good News to these thousands of wanderers?  I wish I had an easy answer or program that would do that.  I am convinced that we need to be more bold and definitely more creative in our efforts to reach out with God's Love.

Getting ready for Back to School.

As we get ready to transition back into our fall.  There are a few things you can help me with.

1.  Pedals In Prescott Bike Club will be kicking off soon.  I am starting to collect more bicycles.  It seems that I can never get enough bikes and parts.

2.  I've noticed a lot of the youth in our neighborhood don't have access to sports equipment.  If you have any baseball mitts, bats, soccer balls, skateboards, footballs, etc.  laying around the garage or basement, we could use them.  I am constantly loaning out the little bit that I have.  It would be awesome to get a whole baseball game or take a bunch of kids skating.

Thanks

August Newsletter - Important Funding update!

Here is our August Newsletter.  It's been a busy month.  Thank you for all of your love and support for our ministry!  

Trotter's August Newsletter

Funding update.

We have our ministry funding figured out.  We have set up a giving fund with Servant Christian Community Foundation.  They will take your support donations and you will get a tax credit.  They will then grant the funds to Grandview Park Presbyterian Church, who will give the funds to me.

I should have all the details and instructions within the next week.  We are pretty excited about this.  It will enable us to keep going and keep all of your support right here in our ministry.  This looks to be a better option that spending all of the time, effort, and money to apply for our own 501 (c)3.

Now to catch up on our support.

July Newsletter

Here is our July Newsletter:

July Newsletter

When Helping Hurts

Found this interview.  Great Stuff!

My Front Porch

June Newsletter

Here is a link to our June Newsletter:

Trotter's June Newsletter

YouthWorks & KCK Partnership

I created a page that we can all share what's going on this summer in our neighborhood.

Can't catch a break!

I can't catch a break. Not as in luck in hard times, but a break, a moment to rest, some time to relax.  Last evening was one of those times.  I was gone all day being out in the sun and Dana was tutoring a neighbor, so I thought I'd relax and watch a soccer game.  Then it started.  Knock, knock, knock, ... hit pause.  A youth named Eric and his uncle show up at the door and ask if he could mow my lawn for $10.  He had never mowed a lawn before and wanted to learn. How could I say no, right?  Anyway,  I spend some time showing him how to use my motor-less mower.  About then, Christopher and Jeffery show up to inquire about a bicycle.  After getting the chain fixed and training wheels removed, I went back to my game.  Eric finished the lawn.  Then back to the game.  Then Carlos showed up with a bike that he had broken.  He stayed to chat for a bit.  He asked me if I could teach him to drive so he could get his license.  OK.

Actually, the soccer game was fairly uneventful, ending in a nil-nil tie.  Especially compared to loving my neighbors!

YouthWorks in town

Now that I've got the kitchen done, I can slow down my pace on the a little (just a little, there is still a lot to do).  The big thing going on here is that our neighborhood is hosting YouthWorks teams this summer.  There will be over 500 students spending a week here.  They will be painting houses and other projects on houses.  They will be doing a lot of kids ministry at the church and with other agencies.


My role is to be the project liaison.  I will help get projects approved and going.  I also will be doing a lot to foster ongoing partnerships with the groups.


Pray that this will be a safe and prosperous summer for all and that both the YouthWorks teens and our residents will experience a deeper relationship with God.

Bike Repair Clinic a big success!

Great turn out for the Bicycle repair clinic.  We gave away over 20 bikes and fixed many neighborhood kids bikes.  It was a great time to help and interact with everyone.  I think we will have to do this again!

Bike Repair Clinic Pics.

More Pics.

Click here to view our monthly newsletter:  Trotter's May Newsletter

Got it out a little late: nothing like 2 weeks of computer issues!

Bring your tools!

"Los que se quedan"

Last night, we took a car-full of neighbors to see "Los que se quendan" ("Those Who Remain").  It is a documentary about families in Mexico and how they are affected by family members who have left to find work in the United States. It looks at the loneliness and all of the issues surrounding these families that are broken up for often times many years.

It was very eye opening to us, know that those who went with us, as well as many of our neighbors are separated from family that remains in Central America.  It is nearly impossible for them to see or visit. This film has won awards at film festivals and I recommend you watch it if you get a chance.

I think we understand more about the dynamic of those who have immigrated to our community.  We can't fix this, but we can be more hospitable, and include them in our family.

Joyanna's Art

My daughter Joyanna received a great opportunity to have some of her art displayed in the main gallery of the KU Scholarship artshow.  She should get some scholarship money from this, but I'm here to brag on her.  We are proud of her.

There are a bunch of pictures on Dana's Facebook:  Joyanna's Art

She also has been given the opportunity to study in Florence, Italy this summer.  Then one more semester this fall.

Happy Easter!

Jesus Blood Never Failed Me Yet

This is an amazing recording composed by Gavin Bryars.  The song is a loop of a homeless man singing.  The homeless man was recorded in London in 1971.  Gavin composed the music and released it in 1993.  It is very powerful and been stuck in my head all week for Easter.

Beauty and the Beast.

We had the privelage to see see Beauty and the Beast twice this past week.  Once by Trilogy and then by Act One.  Both were done well and we were amazed and proud of the youth who performed it.

Watching it will always remind me of watching it with my daughter Joyanna when she was little but Belle's love for books is more like Dana.  Anyway, viewing this will always have some sentimental value to me.

There is something else that has always intrigued me about this story.  I was hooked from the first song where Belle sings, "There must be more than this provincial life."  The key to this shown all through the story and is not the fairy tale ending that one would suppose.
Maurice sets off to make a better life for him and his daughter.  Belle gives up her freedom for her father.  Lumiere, Mrs. Potts and all serve Belle despite there adversity.  The Beast releases Belle in an act of love.  Belle returns to love a beast.

Living a life that is lived for others is the key.  When we live in such a way that others benefit and see love in us and through us, we live the life we were designed to live - a life than is anything but "provincial."

Here is our April Newsletter

Here is our April Newsletter. We appreciate all of our friends and supporters!

Trotter's April Newsletter

Back to normal

I never expected it to take me a whole week to fully recover from the trip to the Philippines, but I am feeling back to normal. It hasn't helped that I have been working non-stop to get my house ready for sheetrock. I got all of the walls and floors insulated and got everything prepped. There is a stack of 70 sheets of drywall in front of my house and I'm off to Home Depot in a few minutes to pick up a jack to hang the ceilings.

I had lunch with a friend who lives here in my neighborhood. We talked and dreamed of ways to reach this neighborhood. I can't wait to be able to act on some of our dreams. Two of my big dreams are to have a youth Bible study in my house and to develop a youth worship service in the area. Pray with me that this will come around.

More video and pictures from the Philipinnes

Here is a video that we showed in church last week along with a slide show of all of the pictures that Michael and I took.

Philippines Video                            Slideshow

Phase One Complete

I've been back from the Philippines for almost a week now.  I didn't anticipate how worn out I was from the trip, the long flight, and the time change.  Since I've been back, I finished all of my rough-in requirements and have received an approval inspection.  That simply means that I have a green light to finish the house!  The next step is to sheetrock the house.  I am looking for a company to do this, but haven't found anyone yet.  I'll be on the phone today.  

Started bike club back up yesterday.  I've been adjusting the times to try to include more kids.  I've got some from different school and some who have soccer practice...  

Time to get going it and hang some insulation.

Pictures From the Philippines

Here is a slideshow of some pictures we took in the Philippines.  We will put more together later.  Michael and I will be sharing about our trip in church this weekend.  Thanks for your prayers.

Greetings from Aritao

Weather is awesome!  We are having a great trip!  A lot of salvation decisions at the basketball crusades in the mountains!  Thanks  for praying!

Pastor Michael and I will be in the town of Comon, Aritao, Nueva Vizcaya.  It is is the middle of the largest island, about 9 hours north of Manila.  We will be hosted by Pastor Rey and Lina Descalzo.  Here are a few pictures :

Our itinerary is on my previous post.  Michael and I will appreciate your prayer during our trip.  Thanks.

Itinerary for the Philippines.

I am really excited for my trip to the Philippines.  I plan on spending the beginning of this week getting ready.  Here is the itinerary for the trip:


Thurs- Fri   March 17, 18  - Fly from Kansas City to Newark, NJ to Tokyo to Manila.
Sat              March 19         -Drive 9 hours from Manila to Aritao

Sun             March 20  -Sunday Service

Mon            March 21         -Visit and Pray our Governor  LLuisa LLoren Cuaresma                    

Tues          March 22          -Crusade ( Basketball Ministry)                                                      

Wed           March  23        -Crusade ( Basketball Ministry)                                                     

Thurs         March  24         -Crusade ( Basketball Ministry)                                                     

Fri              March  25          -Youth Fellowship Revival                                                             

Sat             March  26          -DJR Christian School-1st Grand Alumni Parade  (1991-2011)        

Sun            March 27           -Sunday Service & Nursery, Kinder Thanksgiving Day                      

Mon            March 28          -DJR Christian School( Graduation Day)                                       

Tues          March 29          -Family Day                                                                                                                                           

Wed           March 30          -Travel to Manila                                                                        

Thurs         March 31          -Return Home

Looks like a very busy schedule.

A few changes.

I have had to make a few changes in my schedule.  Mostly around bike club.  I am moving it to a later time in the day so Alias and a few others who want to be involved can.  After I get back from the Philippines, Pedals in Prescott will meet from 4:00 until 6:00.  Because of this, I have to give up being a small group leader at CRUX for now.  Kinda of a bummer, because I have such a great group of boys.

Another cool things that happened yesterday is a short chat with Pastor Rey Descalzo in the Philippines on Facebook.  Kinda cool that we can meet and chat half way around the world.

Well time to fix everything the house inspector found that was wrong.  Really not so bad.  The house will be ready for sheetrock in April.

March Newsletter

Here is the link to our March Newsletter.  Thanks for all of your love, prayers, and support.

Trotter's March Newsletter

Inspections tomorrow!

Tomorrow morning the city inspector is coming to inspect my house.  Hopefully he ok's it for sheetrock.  That will be a big relief to be able to start the finishing phase of the renovation.  I am waiting on one estimate on getting the sheetrock done.  I'm open to more if you know someone.  Here are a few pictures of what it looks like now:

Sad to see a family move on.

It seems that sometimes you love people and start showing them God's love and then they are gone.  That happened to our neighborhood when the Nelsons left.  They were a family with 12 kids and a lot of issues. The kids would attend church and youth group and bike club.  They weren't the easiest to love but we loved them and they soaked it up.  Due to a lack of work and many other issues, the Nelsons packed up and moved to Oklahoma.

I wish I could say that they turned their lives around and started following Jesus, become a loving family, budget their money, become good students, etc. during their time in our neighborhood.  I do know this: this family heard that God loves them and received a lot of love in the name of Jesus.  We can only pray that God will complete the work he started.

God, please bless the Nelsons. Provide work and people in this family's lives that would show them your love.  Meet their needs.  Pursue them with your love.  Help us all to love those around us while we have the opportunity.

Youth ministry in my neighborhood.

Yesterday I got to lead youth group over at the church.  A 15 minute lesson usually takes 30-45 minutes.  These kids attention span is about 30 seconds.  Some less.  We talked about John 15:12-17, where Jesus gives the command to love one another.  Good discussion.  Maybe it will sink in.

Today was bike club.  At first, Daniel and Mario were there.  We raked the front of the church and filled the dumpster half full of these pine cone things.  then when Adrian got there, we rode our bikes up to City Park.  A beautiful park up on the hill with a great view (if you don't mind looking down on I-70 and the train yards.  This park is busy when the weather gets nice.  Unfortunately, a lot of youth get in trouble here on the weekends.  Then we went to the tienda for Takis and Jarritos.  Then we rode back to the church for our weekly soccer game.  Afterwards, Dana and I helped Mario with his homework.  It is awesome just to talk about life with these boys.  Besides, what 51 year old wouldn't just jump at the chance to pop wheelies with a bunch of 14 year olds!

I have to opportunity to go to the Philippines this next month with Pastor Michael.  We will spend 2 weeks with the missionaries our church supports, Rey and Lina Descalzo.  They pastor a small church there and do all sorts of out outreaches.

We will be gone the last 2 weeks in March.  I'd love to get my house ready for drywall by then.  So the blitz is on.  I have some more wiring to do.  All of the outlets and switches boxes are in and 800 feet of wire has been pulled.  I'm meeting with a plumber this morning to figure out the kitchen.

Here is a little bit about the ministry in the Phillipines: DC Missions - Philippines

I am really excited to get to go on this trip to be able to share God's love and join in with what God is doing  in the Philippines and also to spend some time with Michael.

I'll just be 2 more weeks behind schedule on things here!

Ouch -> Opportunity

So yesterday after a great weekend, I was working on installing some recessed can light in our kitchen.  I hit my thumb with my hammer. I haven't done this in a while and forgot how much it hurts.  Noted, don't do that again. Maybe using nail guns is safer.  Anyway.  I quit working a little earlier and decided to ride my bike around the block to somehow relieve some of the pain.  Biking always helps.  I stopped up the street to say hi to Kenny and met a family from Bosnia that is living in the same house.  They have 2 kids, one is autistic, and can't find work.  Then I rode home and had to jump my bike off of the curb; just had to because it was there.  A neighborhood kid saw me and said something.  I stopped to say hi and met Eric.  He likes bikes too.

This all reminded me that to be a part of a neighborhood, the best way is to be out in the neighborhood.  This brief series of events was encouraging.  We will have many opportunities to share God's love.

Youth Group tonight, Bike Club tomorrow.   Now back to wiring my house so I can get out in the neighborhood more.

Ben Cohen fixes the budget.

Our February Newsletter

Here is the link to our February Newsletter.  We want to thank you all for your love, prayer, and support of our family and ministry!

February Newsletter

Snow Day

Youth group was cancelled last night and I cancelled bike club for today. That doesn't mean that kids still won't show up at my house this afternoon.

No snow day here. I'm getting a lot done on the house with no distractions, no where to go. I have most of the framing done. I'll need to get more lumber once the roads are clear. Next we take on the electrical.


This quote came up on my Quote of the Day;

Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect.


Mark Twain (1835-1910)

Great Video!

Take a half hour and watch this video from the CCDA conference in 2009.  It is the most inspiring and motivating thing I've seen in a while.  It'll shake you up, guaranteed!

!We've been DC WOWed!

About a dozen men showed up at our house between 9:00 and 10:00 and worked until 2:00.  We completed the framing in over half of the house.  What a huge blessing!  We've been DC WOWed!

Muchos gracias, amigos!

Before

After!

Bike Club in the Snow.

Bike club was a lot of fun.  Here are some pic. -> Pedals in Prescott

I am about 2/3 of the way done with the floor joists.  I got 5 done yesterday.  The dust and the lifting are trying to get the best of me.  Should be done by the end of the week.  This weekend, some guys from Desperation Church are going to help me frame the main room walls.  

Today, Dana and I are going to a FAFSA training.  We will be helping families of high school students get their taxes filed and the FAFSA filled out to get financial aid for these kids.  Then tomorrow is bike club.

 

Here is a link to our January Newsletter.  Thanks for reading.

Lee and Dana's January Newsletter

Wisdom from Charlie Brown

We had a great visit with my and Dana's family.  We needed the break.  The weather was good, not so good for swimming, but great for relaxing and visiting.  My brother and I got on a rant of recalling things we did growing up, bringing up events and names we hadn't spoken for over 30 years.  My dad and I messed with his cars.  We spend time laughing and eating. It's a wonderful life, right? It gets harder to leave and come back every time.  


Now we are back and have a whole new year to experience.  Yesterday, I was sitting and thinking on New Years' Day if I felt any different than I did the day before.  As if just because the calendar changed, I somehow would magically change also.

I started perusing some famous New Years' quotes and found this one from Charlie Brown, "You know how I always dread the whole year? Well, this time I’m only going to dread one day at a time."

One day at a time. If I take the liberty of turning Charlie Brown's pessimism into a positive thought, it would become, "You know how I never change at New Years'? Well, this time I'm only going to change one day at a time."


Yep.  That's it.  That almost seems do-able. It is not as overwhelming as a list of New Years' resolutions. It is becoming a little better every day.  A little more like Jesus than I was yesterday.  It is now my prayer for me and everybody.


God, change me daily.  Make me a better man today than I was yesterday.  As I discover each new day, change my heart, my thoughts, my habits, my desires to be more like Jesus.  Remind me constantly of your love and my participation in that love.  Mold me into a better man, not just for my own sake, but for the sake of others also.  Amen