Keep Going

 

Just before the feeding of the 5000,

Jesus and the disciples were going to a solitary place

Because they were exhausted and needed to rest.

Rest didn’t come, however,

Because people followed them and

Jesus had compassion on the people.

 

On Friday night,

I reflected on Mark 6’s telling of this story.

First, I wrote down what I imagined Jesus saying through the text.

Then I wrote down what God was saying to me for this time of history.

Maybe one of these will speak to you.

Maybe you need these messages, too.

 

…

 

Come.

Rest awhile.

Eat with me.

Drink with me.

But no—

Nevermind.

There is more work to do.

Look at them—

The people—

They are hungry and hurting.

Compassion runs over.

And it’s up to us to show them a steady presence—

To teach about love and

To heal through being together.

So keep going.

I will make it possible—

Even when you need rest.

And when it seems impossible—

I will feed thousands with

5 loaves and 2 fish—

And still there will be enough.  

 

…

 

Keep going.

Keep giving.

Keep showing up.

Keep writing.

Keep praying.

There will be moments of rest on the boat—

The journey with me can renew and restore.

Just keep going.

I am greater than

The country going backwards

Eating disorders

Cancer diagnoses

Deportation

Broken justice

Misplaced blame

Fear

ALL can be fed.

But you have to keep going.

Let me do what you cannot.

 

Amen.

Week of Prayer for Christian Unity

 

I learned something new yesterday: 

There is a Week of Prayer for Christian Unity

And we are currently in that week,

January 18-25. 

I had no idea. 

And I can’t think of a more fitting time. 

 

According to my research:

 

The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity is an annual international ecumenical event whose origins go all the back to 1908. 

 

It is a dedicated time for Christians of all denominations to come together in prayer and reflection, seeking the unity of the Church and promoting reconciliation among Christian communities.

 

The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity emphasizes Jesus’ prayer from the Gospel of John: “That they may all be one” (John 17:21). 

 

It serves as a reminder of the shared faith and mission of Christians and encourages dialogue, understanding, and cooperation among diverse traditions, Catholic, Orthodox, Protestant, and other. 

 

I don’t know about you,

But I think we need this week now 

More than ever. 

 

During our prayer of confession yesterday,

We prayed a beautiful, humbling prayer

And then received forgiveness

And the challenge to go and do better.

 

May this be our prayer this week 

And may it spur us to unity 

In the one who is Love.

 

Amen. 

 

—-

 

Merciful God, 

You speak blessing and compassion into the world. 

Forgive us for the ways we act

With judgment, cruelty, or indifference. 

We ignore the needs of our neighbors;

We resist your call to oppose injustice;

We live in scarcity and fear;

We assume the worst about one another. 

Cleanse us from our faults

And release us from their grasp. 

Show us your lovingkindness.

Restore our hearts and repair your world, 

That we may live in Christ’s ways.

Amen. 

The Loving-Kindness of God

 

We worshipped through lessons and carols at church yesterday. 

This was somewhat counter-cultural since most people have long since put up their Christmas decorations and music. 

But it was a lovely service that included a lot of beautiful Christmas music and 

Some of the most beloved scripture passages of all times. 

 

Just before the official lessons and carols began, 

Pastor Ann led a portion of the service that served as the prayers of the people. 

I was following along and offering my solidarity in prayer 

Until she almost finished. 

She prayed, 

“(We pray for) all who do not know the loving kindness of God,”

And my eyes filled with tears.

We often pray for those who are lost or hurting, 

Those lonely or unloved,

Those sick or dying, 

Those poor or marginalized. 

We even sometimes pray for those who do not know Christ. 

But something about those words yesterday--

Something about not knowing the loving kindness of God--

Stopped me in my tracks.

 

As Pastor Ann continued praying,

I got lost in a litany of names and lives.  

I know so many people who view God as a God of harsh judgment and punishment. 

I know so many people who have experienced hatred, manipulation, and control in the name of God and can therefore not understand God any other way.

 

Truth be told,

I used to be one of those people myself.

I thought of God as a being in the sky, with a long beard and clipboard, keeping record of wrongs, and waiting to strike when too many transgressions occurred.

 

But that’s not God. 

God is love.

And the story of God and God’s people demonstrates this love time and time again,

Especially in Jesus’s life. 

 

So I pray for those who do not know the loving kindness of God. 

I pray that, somehow, they will know loving kindness toward themselves, 

And that that understanding will transfer to God, the origin of Love,

Then back to self and then back to God

In a never- ending cycle of love.

 

Amen. 

Breathe Out

 

On Monday, I wrote about showing up.

Today, I’m going to share a practice that I often employ

When showing up for those I love.

 

Whenever I sense that someone is struggling and

I want to help them,

I simply breathe in and breathe out,

Letting my breath be my prayer.

 

Only, it’s not so simple.

 

Upon breathing in,

I imagine sucking in the

Darkness, heartache, pain, loss, and hurt—

Taking it away from them and putting it inside of me.

 

Inside of me is Jesus,

Who then takes the

Darkness, heartache, pain, loss, and hurt

And transforms it into

Light, love, strength, happiness, peace, and everything good.

 

I do this over and over,

Breathing in the dark, stank air,

Breathing out the light, fresh air.

Breathing in what I want to take from those I love,

Breathing out what I want to give to them in return.

 

I don’t know if it “works.”

I don’t have any scientific evidence saying that it does or does not.

All I know is that it “works” for me,

And it helps me sit in the midst of darkness, heartache, pain, loss, and hurt

And not be consumed by it all.

 

Is showing up always easy?

No.

Is breathing in darkness always easy?

No.

Sometimes it hurts.

But Jesus is there.

In my heart.

Working to hold it,

Working to purify it,

Working to transform it,

Working to do what I cannot,

And leaving me to do what I can:

Send out light, love, strength, happiness, peace, and everything good.

 

Regardless of whether this practice works for you,

I encourage you to find something that grounds you

And connects you to your breath, to others, and the

very Breath of Life.

 

Remember:

There is a lot we cannot do in this world.

There is a lot we cannot afford to give.

But just as surely as the sun rises and sets each day,

We can show up for one another.

And we can breathe.

 

Amen.

Prayer in School

 

Maybe I shouldn’t have, but I did. 

 

I’m practicing in the auditorium with my 4th and 5th graders this week. 

We have a program on Friday night. 

A church meets in the auditorium on the weekends.

Some of their instruments and unassuming stuff is still on stage. 

At the end of rehearsal this morning,

One of my students walked up to the prayer request station 

And quietly asked if he could write a prayer. 

I told him yes. 

So he did. 

Another kid joined him and asked me how to spell Vietnam. 

As the original student walked away, he wiped tears from his eyes.

 

Like I said, maybe I shouldn’t have let them use the church’s materials

To write a prayer during school hours. 

But I did. 

And at least for today, 

I’m not sorry. 

Free

Oh God—

I want to live free

Because I AM free indeed.

You have made me so, Jesus,

And you ARE MAKING me so—

Every day, every moment—

A release of the fears that bind.

You say do not worry about tomorrow—

You say live today for today.

You, who is the WORD,

Have spoken truth as are YOU ARE the truth.

Help me to live in that truth—

Always in your truth,

Not as fiercely independent and self-reliant,

But in community and relationship and service to others,

In you,

In Love.

Amen.

A Prayer for Western NC

 

Oh God,

Western North Carolina is broken.

The layers of trauma and hurt are as complex and deep

As the mud and waters that lay stagnant

In homes and communities shattered

By the power of Nature’s force.

 

For all who have lost physical possessions and are trying to put the pieces back together,

Lord, have mercy.

 

For all who have lost loved ones to certain death,

Lord, have mercy.

 

For all living in the uncertainty of a loved one’s whereabouts,

Lord, have mercy.

 

For all who are stranded with no power, food, or water,

Lord, have mercy.

 

For linemen, rescue workers, and all who are on the ground to provide disaster relief,

Lord, have mercy.

 

For all who will try to take advantage of those whose lives have already been devastated,

Lord, have mercy.

 

For all who feel helpless but can only offer prayers and financial support,

Lord, have mercy.

 

The aftermath of Helene is going to linger long and hard.

Help us as we recover and rebuild.

Help us to be community in action and

To be the answer to our own prayers.

Help us to go and do,

To be hands and feet and ears and hearts.

Always.

 

Amen.

Prayer For Peace

 

Tamara played a version of “Make Me A Channel of Your Peace”

For the prelude yesterday morning.

It was based on the Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi:

 

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 despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
where there is sadness, joy.
O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
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.

 

I’ve sung two versions of this song in my life.

I wrote one for a friend’s ordination

And I arranged one for a church.

Both the friend and the church are in my past now,

But the songs are still in my head.

I’m glad.

Maybe if I start singing them again,

Then they’ll become self-fulfilling prophecies.

What’s more, maybe if I simply start praying this prayer each day,

Then it will become part of me,

Like the Lord’s Prayer,

And John 3:16.

A Prayer For Those You Love

 

Have you ever wanted to knock some sense into someone you care about?

 

You watch them make poor decision after poor decision

And can’t get them to do any different?

(Or)

You see their beauty and value

But they cannot see it for themselves.

(Or)

You know their sense of self-worth is basically non-existent

And that they just want to be loved.

(Or)

You know that they consider lack of bad treatment, good treatment,

When good treatment is far from how they’re being treated.

(Or)

You know they need to use their voice to stick up for themselves

But their fears and insecurities keep them from doing so.

(And so)

They continue getting hurt and

All you can do is watch it happen because it’s not your place to fight their battles?

 

It’s hard isn’t it?

To respect boundaries.

To watch someone suffer.

To know you can’t “fix” them?

To know your hands are tied until they break and need you to catch them.

 

I spend a lot of time sighing.

I spend a lot of time praying.

I have no idea how prayer works.

But I still pray.

And today I invite you to do the same.

No matter

If you are a fervent pray-er

Or if you have forgotten how to pray,

Simply say your person’s name and trust that

God hears.

I can’t guarantee that anything will immediately change.

But I can guarantee that expending the energy of saying their name

Will add breath and light and life to the world

And that all those things come from God.

 

Guide them,

Protect them,

And keep them safe.

Bless them,

Strengthen them,

And give them peace, oh God.

Amen.