Prayer from a church in Russia

Paulo Coelho writes about a prayer he found while on his commemorative journey in Russia. The text was found in a Church in Novosibirsk and was in Russian. The translator who made it understandable to Coelho mentioned that the inscription was part of the Ojibwa tradition. Although I have never heard of this tradition, I found the prayer very powerful. Here it is:

"I come to thee as one of your children. I am fallible and small; I need Your wisdom and strength.

Let me walk in Your beauty, and make my eyes always see the red and purple of dusk. Make my hands respect the things that You have created, and enable my ears to understand Your voice.

Make me wise so that I can absorb what You have taught my people and learn the lessons that you have hidden in each leaf and each rock.

I beg you for strength and wisdom, not to be better than my brothers but so that I can defeat the worst enemy I have: myself. In that way, my spirit will be able to return to you without sin."

giant hands
Originally uploaded by snizz.

Amen.