I am no longer my own, but yours.

Put me to what you will, place me with whom you will. Put me to doing, put me to suffering. Let me be put to work for you or set aside for you, praised for you or criticized for you.

Let me be full, let me be empty. Let me have all things, let me have nothing.

I freely and fully surrender all things to your glory and service.

And now, O wonderful and holy God, Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer, you are mine, and I am yours. So be it. And the covenant which I have made on earth, let it also be made in heaven. Amen.

This wonderful prayer is known as the Wesley Covenant Prayer and is recited in many United Methodist churches on the first Sunday of the new year. Wesley wrote it as a reflection of his parents’ affection for puritan values, and it was adopted from that tradition. In many ways, this prayer reaffirms our baptismal vows to reject the evil forces and spiritual wickedness of the world and put our whole trust in God’s grace. Ponder that for a moment. What does it mean to put your whole trust in God? The covenant prayer is a statement of being wholly and completely sold out to our Lord with no holding back. We find its biblical roots in Luke 9:23:

Luke 9 (Common English Bible)

²³ Jesus said to everyone, “All who want to come after me must say no to themselves, take up their cross daily, and follow me.

The Covenant Prayer is a prayer of affirmation.

It is a prayer of hope

It is a prayer of faith.

It is a prayer of surrender.

Read it again slowly and then let us agree to make this our prayer for 2026. We are no longer our own, but his. Let that be ratified in heaven.

Reflect and Rejoice