Praying With Saint PatrickSample

A Prayer for When We Feel Helpless

It was among foreigners that it was seen how little I was.

Patrick, “Confession,” 1

There was nothing to be done, no way for Patrick to save himself. Home was gone, lost in the waves behind them. He had been packed into the boat with the others, and he couldn’t escape. He was beaten, kicked, and pushed into the mud. His clothes were taken from him. The slavers spoke to him in rough Latin, then in Gaelic, and soon he found himself living in a makeshift hut, cold, miserable, hungry, and naked. He couldn’t understand anyone, let alone communicate.

All his life he had been the deacon’s son. He had scarcely been cold in his life and had never been truly hungry. Now he lived in cowering fear. There was a time when he had been full of pride, despite his inability to love himself. Now, in the mud and cold, all of the fine things he thought about himself had proven themselves false. He was not strong enough to break free. Not smart enough to find a way home. Not brave enough to stand up to his new master.

We have all found ourselves in a place where we do not have the resources to solve our problems. There are things we cannot fix. Injustices that defeat us no matter how passionately we oppose them. In those times we come to realize how small we are, how helpless. Like Patrick, we recognize that we need something more than ourselves—someone greater to reach into our lives and pull us to freedom. We may be small, but God cares even for the smallest creatures of the earth. He keeps an eye on the sparrows—and you are worth more than many sparrows.

Pray: God, I am utterly helpless. I am small. All my strength, my intelligence, my money, and my relationships can’t get me out of this mess. I am suffering. Do you see me here? Do you hear my words? If you do, God, I know you are not helpless. You are not small. Please, hear my prayer. Show me a sign today that you see me here in my weakness. Let me know that you are listening when I cry out to you.

I am utterly helpless.

Job 6:13, NLT